Belonging
by Aria Illusine
Summary: Modern AU, Sakura is a guy-shy scholarship student at boarding school who becomes manager of a dorm entirely of upperclassmen guys. If it wasn't for the contract she would turn right around and run for it...ItaSakuDei, with some other AkaSaku pairings
1. Candy Girl

So uh...in spite of all I already have on my plate...I wrote this. Ehehehe...dunno how I feel about the whole Sakura-and-the-Akatsuki-at-school-AU...I hope it comes out sounding original and not like something warmed over because I know it's been done...don't hate me please ^^;

I'm so sorry Mistress Krane, I know I've got Somnolence on my plate but it was giving me major writer's block so I kinda scribbled this down in the hopes that the block would go away ^^; It did help a little ^^

Summary: In exchange for a scholarship to her new coed boarding school, Sakura agrees to take on the job of dormitory manager...to a dorm of seven upperclassmen guys. For someone who's spent the last six years at an all-girls private school and is subsequently guy-shy, that's a pretty big change. Throw in some up-and-down hormones, a touch of name-calling, and a vengeful predecessor to her post, and you've got the makings of "Belonging". So now there's only one last question. Are the Akatsuki supposed to belong to her? Or she to them?

My first attempt at an ItaSakuDei ^^

Disclaimer: Don't own any of the Naruto characters, sadly enough. I wish I did...early birthday present anyone? ^^

* * *

**Belonging  
**

**Chapter 1: Candy-Girl**

"I'm not afraid…"

The words helped to quell the nervousness a little, even if they weren't true. Standing before the surprisingly pristine building's entrance, the brass plaque over the door labeling it as Akatsuki Dormitory, she couldn't help the flutter of apprehension. But then, she had quite a few reasons to be nervous.

For the last six years she had been attending an all-girls private school and living with her mother. Now, she was enrolled at a coed boarding school and taking a job as a dormitory manager at a dorm that, she had discovered _just two hours ago_, consisted entirely of guys.

For someone whose male contact consisted of two childhood friends and the shopkeeper of the corner store by her old school, it was a little intimidating.

Really, she was dying to run to the Konoha dorm and Naruto and Sasuke, but pride, determination, and a contract that gave her a scholarship along with the dorm manager's position, held her back.

"I'm not afraid."

With a deep breath, the sixteen-year-old squared her shoulders, tucked a stray strand of rose-hued hair behind an ear, and pushed open the front door to face her housemates.

The front room was empty.

"Well that's anti-climactic…."

"What is, candy-girl?"

With an involuntary squeak of surprise, she refused to acknowledge any terror in it; she whirled around, and gasped.

It was every member of her dorm standing out on the front stairs of the building, regarding her with expressions of varying degrees of quizzical amusement.

"Hey. What are you doing here?" the tallest of the crew, a guy with a faint bluish tint to his skin and…_gill_ tattoos on his upper cheekbones around his eyes, asked baring rather sharp looking teeth in an uncomforting grin.

"I-I…"

This was too much unexpectedness all at once, and for one terrifically hysterical second Sakura wanted to turn right around sprint for her bedroom (never mind the fact that she had no idea which room was hers). But if she was going to be a dorm manager, she couldn't just turn tail and flee.

Swallowing her stutters, she tried again.

"I'm Akatsuki's new dorm manager."

The reaction was _not_ something she had been expecting.

"_Hell_ yeah! Seriously, no more snake-scum!"

"This is great, yeah!"

A strong, very _male_ arm snaked around her waist and spun her arm around in a circle as the others grinned and laughed, olive-verdant hair brushing her cheeks as they cheered the leaving of her predecessor, someone named "Orochimaru".

_What have I gotten myself _into?!

* * *

A few hours later, Sakura threw the lock to his third-floor single and forced herself to do the tedious chore of putting away all her clothes in the dresser. As long as she didn't have to think of her housemates…flashes from her first afternoon with them flitted through her mind.

_I'm thinking of them…again._

Sakura groaned, discarding her moon-and-star print pajama pants to flop onto her bed, trying to blot out the memories.

"Too much guy all in one go," she muttered to the silence.

She could still remember the green-haired guy, Zetsu she'd learned his name was, swinging her around until she was pulled from his arms into the hold of a guy who told her she was "a hot-ass gift from Jashin himself."

And the impromptu ice cream party that followed, proposed by the cheery blue-eyed blond that reminded her of her best friend Naruto.

And the shocking discovery that one of her housemates was also her best friend Sasuke's older brother, Itachi.

She whimpered, knowing what her blond friend would say to that.

_Oh geez, Naruto's going to have a field day with this when he finds out…how many people are going to hear I'm _shacking up_ with Sasuke's_ older brother_ by Monday morning!_

A rough knock on her door broke through her thoughts; she scrabbled up into a sitting position.

"Yes?"

"Hey, candy-girl."

Kisame. _Senior, guy with the gill tattoos, on the school's swim team, roommate of…_

"Hoshigaki-san, I have a name," she said, kicking her suitcase of clothes shut before she opened her door.

"Yeah I know, _Haruno-san,_" he said, mocking. "What of it?"

"Use it, please."

"Do something for me then." He laughed, seeing the look that flitted through her emerald-green eyes. "Hey, hey, what're _you_ thinking?" he teased. "I just want you to relax; none of us does the whole last name thing. It's Kisame, Itachi, Sasori, Deidara, Zetsu, Kakuzu, and Hidan, or nothing. None of this Hoshigaki-san crap."

"Oh," Sakura replied, mentally kicking herself for her articulate response as she wondered if Kisame was repeating all the house members' names for her benefit. "Okay…"

"Good. Anyway, come down, dinner's almost ready."

Sakura blinked at the offer, and the sudden change of topic.

_Dinner?_

"Ki-Kisame…"

The shark-like guy who was already disappearing down the hall turned. "Yeah?"

"Dinner?"

The senior grinned. "Hey, it's your first day, and you're replacing the snake-scum; we thought it'd be a good idea. Don't worry," he added, noting the apprehension that blossomed on her pale face. "The cooking's good."

"Alright," she replied, disappearing back into her room, "I'll be right down…"

A quarter of an hour later, she was making her way down the main stairwell and rounding the corner to the kitchen.

"Sakura!"

A happy and _affectionate_ someone pulled her back into a warm chest, arms around her waist. Strands of soft hair tickled her neck as he snuggled into her shoulder, murmuring "pink-haired liberator" and "green-eyed angel of mercy". It wasn't until those murmuring lips brushed the side of her throat that she unstiffened and reacted.

"Let. GO!"

Her elbow slammed back into his midsection as she jumped away, crimson and shaking.

"Ow…Sakura…"

"You deserved that, Deidara," a calm voice said from behind her in the kitchen.

Sakura jerked away, body still in a defensive stance, from the redhead who had appeared from behind her, carrying a large bowl heaped with salad greens.

"Sasori no danna…"

"Just because you're happy, you don't need to assault our dorm manager."

"Yeah okay…sorry…"

The blond, Deidara, glanced at her, cerulean eyes mischievous in his apologetic expression.

Sakura couldn't help herself, she giggled.

Both boys turned to her, bemused at the sudden outburst.

"H-he reminds me of…of my best friend…"

"I'm sorry," Sasori deadpanned, though his crimson-violet eyes shone with amusement. "Come on, dinner's ready."

Sakura followed him to the dining room, slapping away Deidara's hands as he reached out for another hug, surprised at how…_relaxed_ she felt around them.

_I thought I was guy-shy…_

She'd planted a fist into her next door neighbor's face the day she and her mother had moved into their new apartment a week ago for asking if he could give her a tour of the neighborhood. If her mother hadn't been a doctor and an attending of the hospital down the street, they could easily have been moving right out again the same day. Compared to that incident, her reaction to Deidara's cuddling was _mild_.

It was a little frightening.

She stepped into the dining room and the blush that had died down in the last few minutes came back in full force.

"Sakura?"

It was surprisingly neat for a place lived in by seven guys, the table heaped with plates of roast, garlic bread, and mashed potatoes, as well as Sasori's salad. The seats were almost all filled, and when Deidara took his, there was only one place left.

_I'm beginning to think they _like_ torturing me,_ she thought, ignoring the part of her that reasonably argued that they couldn't possibly know she was guy-shy.

The last seat available was between Zetsu and Kisame, along one length of the table facing Kakuzu, Itachi, and Sasori on the other side. The light-haired boys, Hidan and Deidara, sat at either end of the rectangular table.

_I can't believe this…._

She slid into her seat.

"So can-_Sakura_," Kisame said with a grin, "potatoes?"

As the rose-haired girl took the place and everyone started eating, the conversation drifted predictably to the man she had replaced.

"I bet the snake-scum's pretty pissed," Kisame said, flashing his shark-grin at the others around the table.

"Bastard had it coming," silver-haired Hidan interjected.

Itachi across from her hn'd in agreement, a sound that brought back sharp memories of her childhood, of summer days with Naruto and Sasuke and that same sound. Sakura swallowed and put down her fork.

Kakuzu shrugged. "He still has chemistry class to screw everyone over."

"Sakura?"

Verdant eyes flew up to the quiet speaker's face.

*

"_Sakura?"_

_The five-year-old's cotton-candy head popped up, laughing happily as she waved down from the tree house._

"'_Tachi-nii!"_

"_Hey Sakura," the seven-year-old called back, dark eyes soft. "Naruto and Sasuke gave up; you win."_

_She giggled, "I always win."_

"_Yeah, you're really good at hide and seek, Sakura; now come down?"_

"'_Kay, 'Tachi-nii!"_

_The dark eyes widened. "Sakura?"_

"_Comin' down!"_

_The rose-haired girl landed in his arms, laughing at they tumbled into the grass in a heap of arms and legs._

_*  
_

"Sakura."

"Oh…uh…yeah?" Sakura started, cheeks hot.

"Anything wrong? You aren't eating."

_Nothing's wrong, just that I had a flashback about you from when I was five, when I would have sworn this morning that we were total strangers. Nothing major._

"S-sorry, today's just been…a little hard to handle."

Blushing, she speared a carrot with her fork and looked away.

"I'm glad he's gone," Deidara said feelingly, Sakura relaxing as the conversation returned to the topic of the evil chemistry teacher. "He took some sick pleasure in driving us all nuts this summer, yeah."

"Well he's gone now thanks to Sakura here," Kisame said.

All the attention turned back to her.

"Um…who _was_ the previous dorm manager?"

She didn't miss the significantly dark looks that crossed their faces.

"Orochimaru, the chemistry teacher," Zetsu volunteered at last. "You want to steer clear of him. He liked being 'overseer of Akatsuki dorm'; he's not going to like that a little freshman girl took his place. He was sure no one'd take the job."

"Sophomore," Sakura corrected. "And I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

For the second time that evening, Sakura shut the door to her dorm room behind her and threw the lock.

She had already washed up for bed and it was the work of mere minutes to change into her moon-and-star print pajamas before she crawled under the covers. Her pink and sage sheets were cool against her skin as she burrowed into them, running the events of the evening through her head.

"I'm the dorm manager to a dormitory of all guys, some of whom can be pretty touchy-feely, one who occasionally calls me candy-girl, and one who happens to be one of my best friend's older brother," Sakura groaned into her pillow. "On top of that, one of the touchy-feely ones isn't getting the usual guy-shy reaction from me, and I had a flashback about Itachi that could imply that I've forgotten all about someone who may have been a pretty good friend of mine when I was five. Yeah, I think that's it."

With a strangled cry of frustration, the rosy-haired girl yanked the covers over her head and hoped sleep would make the insanity of her first day as Akatsuki's dorm manager go away.

* * *

So...who do you think belongs to whom? XD

Please review ^^ I really want to know what you guys think of this one since it's not my usual kind of story...hopefully I'm not ruining the good ol' cliche. Or my reputation.

Oh wait...I don't have one of those do I? =P

The ItaSaku muse decided to pair up with a DeiSaku muse? But it still likes being fed by cookies so click that button down there, yeah? ^^


	2. Hazards

First off, thank you all my nice reviewers who supported me in this story! ^^ It's a bit haphazard and not all planned out like some of my other fics, but I think that lends some cute charm to the story, ne? Anyway, prepare yourselves for a little HidanSaku, SasoSaku, and of course, my fav, ITASAKU (faint hints here and there too ^^) in this chapter! Please wait patiently for following chapters ^^; the authoress is doing her best but college can be quite the hassle.

I know it's supposed to be an ItaSakuDei...but I've got the whole Akatsuki to work with! Can you blame me for throwing in a few other moments? xD

Disclaimer: Characters belong to Kishimoto. Not me. Unfortunately.

And now that that's out of the way, on with the story!

* * *

**Chapter 2: Hazards**

Sakura hadn't realized the night before just how much trouble living alone on the top floor of the dormitory could be.

_Actually it's not really the living alone part that's the problem,_ she corrected herself as she slipped out of the shower and toweled herself dry. _It's the walking past everyone else's rooms…_

She had made her way down to the bathroom on autopilot, the way she always did early in the morning, and had been halfway through her shower before she'd realized that she'd done what she always did at home and left her clothes in her room.

She hoped her cry of irritation hadn't woken anybody up.

_Who was the stupid idiot who gave this dormitory ONE bathroom with a shower huh? It's _coed_ for crying out loud! What if I decided to be a stereotypical girl and take a really long shower every morning, what then?_

_Actually…I don't think I'd like to try that…they'd probably have no qualms about breaking down the door to the bathroom and…that'd suck._

Her cheeks deepened in color; the fault of her hot shower and all the steam in the room she was sure.

Finally wrapping her slightly damp body in the large forest green towel she'd brought down with her, she surveyed the pajamas she had been wearing distastefully. She had been wearing them for a handful of days; enough that she didn't want to put them on again after she'd gotten all clean. The alternative, though, was walking down the hall and up the stairs to her third-floor room clad in only a towel.

Not a fun thought.

_To dress or not to dress, that _is_ the question…._

In the end it was the hour that decided the matter.

"How many guys are going to be up at eight on a Thursday morning the week before school starts, Sakura," she assured herself as she gritted her teeth, scooping up her pajamas and opening the bathroom door. "It'll be fine…"

_It is _so_ not fine…._

She would get someone to fix the second story floors as soon as possible. They had no right to creak with every step of her passage, making her flinch as she made her torturously slow way down the hall. As far as she knew, this squeaky creaky passage of hers was waking every other inhabitant of the dorm….

_Zetsu's single on my left, then Hidan and Kakuzu's room on my right…_

And then it was Sasori and Deidara's room and Itachi and Kisame's room, and then she would be to the stairs and free. With luck she would be back in her room in five minutes.

She had no such luck.

"…Sakura?"

She whirled around, biting back a scream that would have brought every other guy in the building running, self-preservation kicking in at the last second as she swallowed the yelp.

A somewhat sleepy-eyed teen lounged in the doorway of his room, silvery hair tousled messy from his night.

Hidan.

_Oh crap_, she thought feelingly, watching with a sinking feeling of apprehension as his eyes focused on her, sweeping from her face to her bare shoulders and down all the way to her ankles before slowly traveling up again. _Not good!_

"Hey, Hidan," she greeted, deciding to go for casual to diffuse the awkwardness of the situation. "Sorry if I woke you, I'll be going back to my room now…"

The problem with towels, she decided, was that when you were wrapped up in one, there was only so much of you getting covered. If she tugged the bottom hem down so that there was more thigh being concealed, the top hem also migrated downward to show more cleavage and vice versa. It didn't help being caught in such apparel by an eighteen-year-old male high school senior either.

She inched backwards, trying not to appear as though she were running away as her hand groped behind her for the stair railing that she knew had to be close by.

"Good morning, Sakura," the senior said, a devilish smirk touching his attractive features as he sauntered towards her. "You gonna do this every damn morning, seriously?"

"N-no!" she hissed, already warm cheeks growing darker with mingled irritation and embarrassment. "This is a total fluke! Never happening again!"

The predatory smirk grew as he slowly sauntered to her. "Then, I won't let it go to waste. Seriously."

He was a towering warmth against her front, her body separated from his only by the fabric of her towel. Her swiftly unraveling thoughts wondered why guys insisted on sleeping shirtless, and why she had to get caught by _this _one who exuded masculine satisfaction of the most primal kind, even as his large large hands skimmed over her bare skin to ghost over her waist and he hummed with amusement at her candy-red cheeks as he pressed her back into the wall…

CRASH!

"What the _hell_, Itachi!" Kisame roared, his furious bellow filling the hall. "Can't you just wake me up like a normal human being if my snoring gets to you?!"

The stentorian cry gave Sakura the moment she needed to slip from his grasp and flee up the stairs and disappear into her room, slamming the door behind her.

She slid down into a seat, curling her arms around her bare legs as Kisame's angry yells of "Don't throw me around next time!" and "What's gotten into you?!" floated up through the floor and she buried her crimson face into her knees.

_That'll teach me to forget my clothes in my room here…._

_

* * *

  
_

"Hey, Sakura."

The girl in question, sitting cross-legged on her bed with her journal opened up on her knee, jerked her head up in surprise. She hadn't been expecting company, and would have expected Kisame, Zetsu, or Deidara if she had. Getting to her feet as she schooled her face not to show her vague apprehension, she pulled the door open.

"Kakuzu? What's up?"

"I'm sorry about Hidan."

She blinked. "Um…sorry?" she asked blankly, feeling slightly disoriented. For a second she had no idea what Kakuzu was talking about, but when her mind kicked into gear, her cheeks flushed a hot scarlet as her eyes skittered away from the other boy's face. "Oh."

"So are you planning on coming down to breakfast?" Kakuzu asked when the silence between them grew awkward.

Sakura shrugged. She wasn't all that hungry and facing Hidan again after the incident earlier that morning was hardly on the top of her list. _Maybe I'll grab myself a snack when everyone's out of the kitchen…_ Sakura groaned inaudibly. She was hardly shaping up to be a good dorm manager if she couldn't face up to her housemates after a single embarrassing episode.

"Only because, if you don't come down, Hidan doesn't get to eat," Kakuzu added nonchalantly.

Her verdant eyes widened.

"_What?_"

The brunet senior's shoulders quirked in response. "He doesn't get breakfast if you don't come down to join us."

Sakura stared, plainly flummoxed. "I…I still don't understand."

"It's against the rules."

It was like pulling teeth getting an answer from him, and Sakura resisted the urge to just smack the older teen for a straight response. "Are there rules against surprising the dorm manager?" she asked, crossing her arms irritably.

"Kisame made them. Ask him about it. The only part that really matters right now is whether or not you come down to breakfast; if you think Hidan needs to be punished we'll send someone up with your breakfast. If not, just come downstairs."

He fixed her with luminous jade eyes that reminded her of her own. "So, are you coming down or not?"

Sakura returned his look with a serious one of her own, even as she smoothed sweaty palms over her skirt. "Of course I will." _I'm not afraid of a challenge._

"Good. Let's go."

With a nod and a perfunctory check of her bedroom, she slipped out after him, closing the door behind her with a rather solid click.

"Tell me," she said after they made their way down the stairs, "what are these rules you guys set up?"

She was surprised when the older male glanced to her and away, the gesture laden with uncertainty.

"We've never had a real dorm manager before, just the snake-scum. Itachi felt we ought to put down some ground rules and Kisame made them up."

"And they include starving someone?" Sakura asked critically, her brows quirked into a small frown.

Kakuzu shrugged noncommittally. "We're only depriving Hidan of one meal, and it could have been worse. We all agreed to let him off easy because we-," he bit off the rest of the sentence as if the words had been unintended, and picked up his pace. "It doesn't matter, hurry up."

"But-,"

"Later," he replied shortly as the sounds of the boys at breakfast drifted through the halls.

"D'you think Sakura'll come down, yeah?" Deidara asked, obviously impatient.

_Morning person,_ Sakura groaned to herself with a small grin, _figures._

"Maybe," another, Zetsu it sounded like to Sakura, answered.

"Of course candy-girl will. She's not someone who'd hold a grudge." Kisame's response was so confident when he replied that she couldn't manage to stifle a soft laugh and would have disappeared back upstairs for a joke if only Hidan's breakfast hadn't been on the line. She couldn't even bring herself to be annoyed that he'd used the silly nickname.

"I'm glad someone thinks so well of me," she explained when Kakuzu's eyes flickered to hers at her giggle.

"Well, go in," he said with a twitch of his shoulders.

Wrinkling her nose at the order, she took a calming breath, and pushed open the dining room door.

"Sakura!"

Like a bubble bursting, the somewhat tense feeling in the dining room disappeared as Deidara shot out of his seat to swing her around until Sasori plucked her from his roommate's grasp with a serious glare at the blond to behave. Kisame's face was a picture of sharp-toothed pride, Zetsu, even Itachi, reflecting a certain amount of that same emotion. Hidan…

"You came down."

She glanced up into Sasori's heartbreakingly beautiful face, tearing her eyes away from the strangely quiet Hidan, startled by the quiet surprise in his voice. His expression was curious, violet eyes searching her face for an answer.

"I…I couldn't just let Hidan starve," Sakura mumbled defensively in reply, feeling embarrassed as she explained herself. She tucked a lock of rose-petal hair behind an ear self-consciously. "I was stupid to forget my clothes upstairs."

"You were," he told her, his soft tenor growing harsh with a hint of steel in his tone. "Don't be so stupid again."

She stiffened in confusion as his fingertips brushed a cheek lightly.

"Any of us would be upset if you happened to show such attention to one individual of us alone."

_What??_

"Sakura."

The hand gently caressing the curve of her jaw dropped away as she jerked back, Itachi's voice breaking the spell of the redhead's words.

"I-Itachi-san?"

"Your breakfast is getting cold," the raven-haired junior told her, his face distant.

Kisame's hand squeezed her shoulder as she sat. "Sakura…."

_...Oh!_

"Sorry…Itachi…and thanks for reminding me about breakfast," she told him, cheeks flushing as she took a seat at the table. The blush deepened as the other's obsidian eyes warmed.

"Even Hidan can eat today, yeah," Deidara remarked cheerfully as everyone took their seats and dug into the morning meal.

"Yeah, lucky Hidan," Kisame joked, ruffling the girl's hair affectionately. Her cheeks darkened again under his touch.

She nibbled a lip unhappily. "Can we not talk about it?" she pleaded, biting into the corner of her toast.

The tall senior shrugged and nodded. "Well we need to talk about the beach trip anyway."

Sakura perked up, glad for the change of topic. "Beach trip?"

"Every year right before school starts, Akatsuki dorm goes on a beach trip, yeah," Deidara explained from his seat through a mouthful of eggs. "It's really fun, yeah!"

"We leave for a day and a night and come back the next morning," Zetsu added from beside her.

Kakuzu muttered quietly to himself, wincing at a sudden thump of a foot connecting with his shin.

"Train tickets aren't that expensive, seriously." Hidan told him.

The morning meal dissolved into a chaotic discussion of the upcoming trip as the boys each tried to tell her about the hilarious events of previous trips, at the same time.

"So when is this trip?" Sakura asked when she could finally get a word in edgewise.

"Tomorrow," Kisame replied offhandedly, not noticing the quick way Sakura's eyes darted back to her plate to disguise her sudden change of expression.

_I guess that means I won't be going…_

Her disappointment was surprisingly sharp.

* * *

"Sakura."

_Kisame last night, Kakuzu this morning, now Itachi?_

She untangled herself from her covers, stowing away her book before making it to her door.

"What is it…" her words faded as she took in the sight of him, so casually dressed at her door.

Sakura herself was wearing a vibrant orange shirt that clashed horribly with her hair and proclaimed in dark blue letters "Life's Always Better With RAMEN," a gag birthday gift from her best friend Naruto, and navy pajama pants decorated with a tomato pattern that she had stolen from Sasuke on a camping trip and had never managed to return. In comparison to Itachi, she felt like someone who'd gone dumpster diving for her clothes…in the middle of the night while blindfolded.

The older Uchiha male stood at her door, clothed in only a loose-fitting pair of pajama pants of the same navy shade as her own, a familiar fan emblem printed on one pocket.

Struggling not to let her eyes sweep the smooth line of his shoulders, or the tapering of his waist for that matter, she forced herself to act normal.

"So, what did you want, Itachi?"

"We leave at eight tomorrow morning, there won't be time to pack after you wake up," he said, his quick eyes darting to the interior of her room.

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Hmmm?" she asked. _Brilliantly articulate, Sakura-chan…_

"You should pack now."

The words startled her. "What do you mean? I'm not going."

Itachi's reactions were devoid of surprise. He merely shook his head, eyes going to the top of the stairwell leading down to the second floor. "Do you not want to come with us?" he asked instead, stepping towards her.

Sakura's aspen-leaf eyes flickered away from his face to inspect the floorboards. "It's your dorm tradition, I wouldn't want to get in the way," she told the floor softly.

Fingers, far more gentle that she would have expected, tilted her face upwards to the soft gaze of the older male.

"Sakura, it's an Akatsuki dorm tradition," he said patiently. "What dorm do you live in?"

Her jade eyes widened, depths swirling with uncertain understanding. "Akatsuki…."

Itachi's onyx eyes warmed at the word. "Please pack now before bed, we need to leave early to catch our train to the beach."

Pale cheeks darkened with pleasure as Sakura nodded. "I will, thanks Itachi."

He reluctantly lowered his hand from her face as he stepped back to let the girl slip back into her room. "You're welcome."

As Itachi walked away, he hoped that Sakura would pack a different sleeping outfit for their trip. Seeing her wear a bizarre mismatch of his brother, Sasuke, and Sasuke's best friend, Naruto, was strangely irritating.

* * *

Hehehe Itachi's being possessive! I love it.

Anyway, the following chapter will hopefully contain an explanation of Kisame's "rules", some of the Akatsuki beach trip, and surfing! Please be looking forward to it and don't forget to review! Reviews are like cookies for the writer's soul ^^

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, I can reply to your reviews and answer them (as long as they don't ask too in depth about the story ^^ I mean what's the fun if you don't wait a little for it right?)! No that wasn't a shameless ploy to get people to review...was it? =P


	3. Sun Kissed

Yaaaay!! I finally got out the next chapter of Belonging!! Thank you all my nice reviewers for taking the time to review, I'm super excited for any feedback you guys have to give me!

Relationships are moving forward, and Sakura is getting to know her housemates better, plus she's in for a big surprise ^^ Anyway, aside from the chapter itself, I'm now going to try to be a bit more scheduled with my updates so hopefully look forward to that too ^^

Oh yeah! Hishin is a compound of the kanji for fire, "hi", and heart, "shin". Also "Sasori no danna" means "master Sasori", which is Deidara's way of calling his senior roommate.

Disclaimer: Characters are not mine, and the scene between Sakura and Deidara where he spins her around was based off a similar scene from the Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne manga by Arina Tanemura ^^

Please enjoy!

* * *

**Belonging**

**Chapter 3: Sun-Kissed**

"You told her right?"

Itachi leveled his dark eyes at the older youth. "Yes, Kakuzu, I told her last night that we were leaving at eight so she is aware of when we need to leave," he replied irritably. He'd been asked similar questions by Deidara, Zetsu, Hidan (he had been tempted to say nothing; he was still rather annoyed about yesterday morning and taking drastic measures to distract the silver-haired senior from the girl had only taken the edge off his displeasure…hearing the two of them through the dorm's thin walls had been pretty infuriating), and even Kisame.

"She should hurry."

Just as Itachi turned to bite out a terse response, the pounding of feet alerted the group of boys by the door that the last member of their dorm was on her way down.

"Finally she…" the rest of Kakuzu's words died on his lips as she appeared on the landing above them.

The idle chatter of seven upperclassmen faded into silence at the sight of her.

Her cheeks were prettily flushed, matching the shade of her hair as it brushed bare shoulders, half of her rose-hued locks pulled back into a casual ponytail. Emerald eyes sparkled with excitement, her face transformed into a carefree picture of vibrancy. She practically flew down the stairs like a spring-and-summer fairy, the light sundress she wore falling down to mid-thigh, the bottom hem a bright viridian shade that faded into pure white as it crept up her body as if she had dashed through a pool of green watercolor paint. The straps of her swimsuit that tied behind her neck were a snowy ivory and delicate. A pair of sunflower-print flip flops completed her ensemble.

She squeaked with surprise as she was caught up, beach bag and all, to be spun around by Deidara.

"Put me down, Deidara!" she cried, her face flooding with warm color. _Th-this is embarrassing!_ Struggling in his arms, she searched about for something to say that would induce her captor into letting her down. "We'll miss the train!"

At her words, the boys were jogged into action, grabbing their things and heading out onto the campus, mercifully letting Sakura down.

"H-hey, Zetsu," Sakura said shyly as they flooded out from the dorm building in a crowd, "How are we getting to the train station? Isn't it almost a half-hour walk there?"

The verdant-haired guy nodded, "Yeah but who's walking? We're taking Kisame's van."

"Kisame has a van?" Sakura asked, surprised. An impish grin crossed her features, so sudden and mischievous that Zetsu felt drawn in, "Should we be worried for our lives?"

"I heard that, candy-girl!"

Giggling, she hid behind Zetsu to escape the gill-tattooed senior's notice.

"You're in a really good mood today, Sakura," Zetsu remarked as he disregarded the rather pointed glare Deidara shot his way.

The girl jumped away, blushing shyly at her own boldness, completely ignorant of the disappointment that leapt into the other's eyes as she stepped away from him. "I really like the beach," she told him, her eyes bright. "My mom always took me every summer but this year we were busy arranging the move here so we didn't get a chance to go…"

"Oh," the amber-eyed junior murmured in understanding, his tone gentle, "Well you'll really enjoy visiting the beach we go to. It's one of the nicest stretches of the shore."

The rose-haired girl's look of delight, unclouded by self-consciousness, was all the thanks Zetsu wanted.

"I can't wait!" she laughed, climbing into Kisame's van.

* * *

"So where are we going?" Sakura asked when the group was finally all on the train and headed to the shore.

"Oh yeah, forgot you'd have no idea," Kisame laughed from his seat across from her. "We're headed to the Uchiha summer home; they've got a great beach near their place."

"Th-the summer home?" Sakura stuttered, her eyes widening in surprise.

Itachi, seated beside Kisame, lifted an eyebrow, his expression curious. "Didn't Sasuke-kun ever tell you about it?"

"No, Sasuke's never said anything about it," she replied, still stunned. "And I've only ever visited the main house before…"

The elder Uchiha's dark eyes narrowed imperceptibly. "Have you visited the main house recently?"

"Uh-huh," Sakura told him, oblivious to his sudden, silent irritation. "I was over there with Naruto to tell Sasuke that I was finally moving back here to attend Hishin Academy…"

"I see," the dark-haired boy said softly.

Kisame's eyes slid over to his roommate, a snide smirk settling into his features. _Looks like Sasuke failed to mention that little fact to his older brother…and Itachi's not happy about it._ The shark-faced senior grinned to himself. _Guess that makes sense…after all, to Itachi, Sakura's…_

"Kisame…"

"Yeah, Sakura," the older male asked, pulling himself away from his thoughts. "What's up?"

"I heard from Kakuzu about your rules…"

"How much did you have to pay for the info?" Kisame shot back, trying to distract the girl from her implicit question. The rules were something he didn't feel like talking about just yet…or maybe ever.

"Pay?" Sakura asked in surprise. "What do you mean, pay?"

Kisame's dark eyes widened in surprise. "You mean the quintessential miser himself just _told_ you about my rules?" Beside him, Itachi also made a quiet "hn" of disbelief.

"Y-yeah," Sakura stammered, her cheeks growing warm with the sudden attention. "Wh-why shouldn't he?"

Kisame didn't bother replying, already rising out of his seat to round on the group of boys seated behind Sakura in the next booth. "Oi, Kakuzu. What's with the favoritism?" he asked. "You make the rest of us pay for information like that."

Itachi's sharp eyes caught the self-conscious flinch that flitted through the brunet's viridian orbs.

But Kakuzu's, "The answer will cost you," was delivered with its usual nonchalance, as if the question hardly bothered him.

"How much?" Kisame demanded, frowning at the other senior's reaction.

"Three hundred and seventy nine ryo," the other replied in an even deadpan.

"_How much?!"_

"Kisame! We're in a _train!_" Sakura admonished, her face crimson from listening to the earlier exchange. It was now obvious that Kakuzu had done her a favor in telling her the information for free...and it was now causing a ruckus.

"Ignore them," Zetsu told her quietly from the seat beside her. "Kisame's only irritated because Kakuzu always charges him at least fifteen ryo per answer, and something that interesting ought to have cost you at least sixty or more."

"S-sixty?!"

"Depending on Kakuzu's mood, the price might have gone up all the way to eighty five."

Sakura settled back into her seat, pulling a novel from her beach bag. She was going to take Zetsu's advice and ignore her fellow housemates because actually paying attention was getting hazardous to her health.

_High school girl dies from wildly fluctuating blood pressure…_

_

* * *

  
_

"Wait, aren't we going to the house first?" Sakura asked curiously as she was led from the train station to the beach.

"Itachi's driver will pick up our stuff and take it to his place, yeah," Deidara explained to her as she gaped in shock. "Just don't think about it, yeah? What's more important, Sakura, the driver, or that beach over there?"

Deidara grinned as the girl beside him gasped in awe.

"It's pretty, isn't it, yeah?"

Sakura nodded, enthralled. "It's beautiful…"

The beach stretched out before them, a stretch of gleaming white sand broken by the occasional umbrella or towel that faded away into an endless aquamarine ocean. Waves crested and broke across the shore to the cries of gulls, the sounds mingling with the susurration of palm leaves brushing against each other. The air was cool and scented with sand and salt, a light breeze brushing the smell of the ocean to them.

"Come on, candy-girl," Kisame teased, hoisting up the girl over his shoulder a little like a sack of potatoes. "Quit staring at the beach and let's actually get to it!"

"Kisame, put me DOWN!" Sakura shrieked, crimson as an apple as she struggled to keep the hem of her sundress from flapping up with one hand while flailing at her carrier with the other. "I'm serious!"

"Kisame."

"Yeah, yeah, Itachi," gill-tattooed senior muttered good-naturedly as he flopped down onto the sand and deposited the squirming girl onto the ground.

"You jerk!" the strawberry-haired girl yelped as soon as she got her breath back. "Give me a little warning next time!"

"Oh, there's gonna be a next time?" Kisame asked with amusement, baring sharp shark-like teeth at her.

Sakura flushed a deep crimson and crossed her arms with a ferocious scowl that, unfortunately, didn't look too frightening to the shark-featured senior. "No, there is _never_ going to be a next time."

"Suit yourself, candy-girl," the older male teased, patting her on the head infuriatingly. "I'm going to head over to the summer house, okay, Itachi?" he added, ignoring her completely as he talked above her head to the boy seated in the shade of a beach umbrella on her other side.

"Okay, see you later."

"Later," Kisame disappeared with a smirk.

"Geez, that was embarrassing," she muttered at her knees, drawing them up to her chest defensively.

"Was it?"

A muffled noise of surprise escaped her as a sudden jolt of panic shot through her system.

_Gotta stop doing that…I can't always be so guy-shy!_

Itachi watched her coolly with hooded midnight eyes.

"Yes, it was embarrassing," Sakura bit out, trying to keep her composure around the older Uchiha male. For some reason, she was strangely nervous around him, something she couldn't explain. It was a far cry from the way she felt around his younger brother Sasuke, her childhood friend whom she felt singularly comfortable around.

"Ah."

"Where is everyone else?" Sakura asked when the silence between them finally got to be too much for her.

Itachi's obsidian eyes flickered from the shore to her face and back, causing her skin to prickle. "While you were standing mesmerized by the view, the others went to set up a beach volleyball court. They'll probably come to get you soon."

"Oh."

Another pause.

"Itachi…why are you sitting in the shade?"

"Hn."

"That's not an answer," the girl muttered, shading her eyes against the sun's glare as she canted her eyes to him and away. "Let me guess…you forgot to pack sunscreen."

"No. I put it on before we left."

"You're allergic to sunlight?"

"No, I don't have a sun allergy."

He raised an eyebrow as he caught her softly muttered, "Pity, you'd have made a great vampire…"

"You're…_afraid_ of sunlight?"

"Sakura, I merely haven't applied any sunscreen to my back."

She stared at him as if he had suddenly decided to paint his finger and toenails purple.

"I am not hyper flexible. My body maintains merely human mobility and thus I cannot apply sunscreen to my own back."

"That's silly," Sakura told him, forgetting her diffidence in the face of this new situation. "You could just ask someone to help you."

"Hn. Will you put sunscreen on my back, Sakura?"

A long pause stretched out between them.

Then.

"What?"

"You advised I ask someone for help. You are the only person nearby that I am familiar with."

The sixteen-year-old blushed hotly, caught by her own impulsive words. "B-but…"

"Yes?"

An inaudible sigh escaped her lips. "Nothing…can you g-give me your sunscreen?"

A blue bottle landed in her outstretched hand.

_Okay Sakura…no big deal…just squeeze out some sunscreen and apply…_

Except that he was shirtless, wearing nothing but a pair of navy swim-trunks accented by flame blazes, barefoot and languishing on the beach towel in a way that drew her eyes to the sleek line of his body. Every clean line of his form called for her to touch him, even if the excuse was as flimsy as the one he'd created.

_Focus, Sakura!_

Itachi stiffened as soon as the viscous lotion oozed over his shoulders, stilling when small hands hesitantly smeared the oily substance across his shoulder blades, warming his flesh as they smoothed the sunscreen into his skin. He leaned into the soft touches as she applied more sunscreen to his back, his face maintaining his usual calm demeanor as his skin warmed under her shy touch from the racing of his pulse. She worked slowly, carefully, gently massaging as she worked the lotion down his spine and sides. Soft, girlish hands, _touching._

And pulling away too soon.

His disappointment at the loss of contact was sharp.

"There," she mumbled, "I'm done."

He turned to her, dark eyes swirling with flecks that she swore were _crimson_. "Thank you. I still like your handiwork best."

*

_"'Tachi-nii, 'Tachi-nii, why won't you play with us?"_

_"Oi, Sakura, he never plays with us!"_

_"Come on, Sakura."_

_"But…" she mumbled, glancing from her two best friends at the shoreline to the older boy seated under the beach umbrella in the shade. "'Tachi-nii, please?"_

_"Sorry, Sakura. I didn't have a chance to put any sunscreen on my back," the boy told her. "I couldn't reach."_

_"Well if that's it, I'll help!" the rose-haired six-year-old laughed cheerily, squirting a liberal amount of sunscreen onto the boy's back without preamble. Tiny, childish hands slathered the lotion across his shoulders and spine, leaving wide streaks of skin without any sort of sun protection. "Play with us now?"_

_His expression was shyly amused. "Okay, Sakura. I'll play with you now."_

_She laughed happily as she tugged him up from the sand, leading him down to her other friends wading in the water._

_It wasn't until much later that the sunburns became noticeable._

_"I-I'm sorry, 'Tachi-nii," the small cotton candy-haired girl sniffled, remorsefully squeezing aloe vera gel into his mother's hands. "I di-didn't mean to…"_

_A warm hand brushed away the fat tears that rolled down her sun-pinkened cheeks. "It's okay, Sakura, I think you did fine," Itachi told her with a boyish grin. "I liked your sunscreen handiwork best."_

_*  
_

"Th-that's great," Sakura stammered, hurriedly getting to her feet. "Well now I'm warm so I'm going to go take a beach on the dip, I mean, dip in the ocean!" Abandoning her flip flops and beach bag, she fled.

Itachi watched her go with hooded eyes. "Maybe she…remembered something?" A small smirk lit his pale features. _I hope so._

The crunch of sand underfoot alerted the slim Uchiha of his roommate's return. "Hey, where's Sakura?"

"Hn."

"Did you scare her off?"

All across the sand crabs scuttled for the waterline at the sudden burst of animosity.

* * *

"Sakura?"

She shivered and laughed, turning to find Sasori and Deidara calling her from the dry sand. The cold ocean water sloshed around her knees, buffeting her pale legs as the tide ebbed and flowed around her.

"Is the volleyball court ready?" she called, catching the hem of her sundress before it dipped into the ocean.

"Uh-huh, hurry up, yeah?"

The girl nodded, strawberry locks spilling out from the hair-tie to add to the strands framing her face as they danced in the wind's grasp. With the sun shining in her face, the breeze at her back, she glowed like a nymph rising from the sea, the contours of her body accented by the dress that clung beguilingly to her curves.

Sasori found himself needing to swallow, his mouth suddenly gone dry.

The sweet and innocent aura surrounding her made him want to wade out into the water and join her, to feel her wind-chilled body against his. Her emerald eyes found his violet ones, curious and shyly laughing as they sparkled in the sunlight.

"Sasori no danna?"

The cold of the ocean against his bare feet and the stark confusion in Deidara's voice broke him from his reverie. Sasori glanced back to his roommate, realizing that he had unconsciously traveled several feet towards the rosy-haired siren standing knee deep in the water.

The crashing of the surf was loud, and his eyes flew to the ocean again, just in time to see the wave cresting behind the oblivious sixteen-year-old.

"Sakura!"

Her startled shriek filled the air.

"Argh, so freaking _cold!_"

She shivered, soaked from the waist down by the passing wave that washed seaweed over Sasori's ankles. Making a face, she began to wring out the hem of her dress, unconscious of how her actions showed a tantalizing amount of thigh.

"Sakura…"

"Sorry," she called, wading from the icy water as she continued to pull the skirt higher. "I'm coming, I'm coming." The rose-haired girl winced as the sodden fabric clung to her back.

"Stop that," Sasori admonished, voice harsh and quiet.

She stared up at him with curious eyes. "Huh?"

Nimble fingers danced up her back to the ties of the sundress, and with a quick tug the knot between her shoulder blades fell loose. His warm hands skimmed up her sides underneath the dress, shoving the garment up past her thighs, waist, breasts, and finally her head, to leave her in only her swimsuit, the wet sundress now in his possession.

Amethyst eyes swept over the slim, shivering girl as she hugged herself in an attempt to get warm, barely covered in her white bikini with the pink lily pattern creeping up the left side of her body. It tied around the back of her neck and mid-spine, the slim ties accenting the gentle curves of her body, the bottom half of the bikini secured by gold rings at each hip.

"Sa-Sasori!"

"You'll only get colder if you leave wet clothes on," he told her in a blank deadpan, slinging her sodden dress over one bare shoulder, the seawater from it dripping down to the hem of his dark crimson swim trunks.

"Oi! Sasori!"

Sakura flushed as Deidara appeared beside them, irritability written all over his features. "Sakura are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Sakura replied shyly, going an even darker crimson as the blond pulled her into a sudden embrace. "What are you doing?!"

"Warming you up again!" he told her cheerfully, burying his face into her neck as he had before.

Viridian eyes sought out violet, unthinkingly, only to find that Sasori was already walking away, her dress still in his possession. "D-Deidara…let go!" She squirmed in his grip. "Please!"

"No."

Sakura shivered in Deidara's arms, growing still at the seriousness in his tone. "…Deidara?"

"Why should Sasori no danna be the only one to touch you?" he asked, his lips brushing against her bare shoulder. "Sakura elbowed me when I touched her, but Sasori…"

She wasn't afraid; it was strange but there was only a tint of guilt running through her system. Somehow she had hurt Deidara's feelings, Deidara who reminded her vaguely of Naruto. She gently tried to pull herself from his arms again, and this time he let her go.

But to his surprise she didn't try to hit him or run off, and merely took a step closer, until she needed to tilt her head up to look into his face.

"Sakura?"

She could feel the traitorous blush starting, but she clamped it down, trying to get all the words out before embarrassment swamped her and she went completely tomato-colored.

"D-Deidara…I'm sorry, I'm just…I'm just a little guy-shy. I used to go to an all-girls school so I-I'm not good around guys b-but it's not like I don't…don't…l-like you…" she stammered out, starting to feel lightheaded from all the blood rushing to her face. _You'd think all that blood would _keep_ me from feeling like I'm about to faint…_

"So…I shouldn't…" Confusion swirled in Deidara's sky-blue eyes.

"N-no!" Sakura was quick to dissuade him. "You shouldn't change for me…I…I want to be able to be okay with…with your hugs." Hooded distress echoed in her jade eyes, as her voice softened into a shy whisper, "Please don't treat me like glass…"

_But even though she says that,_ Deidara thought to himself sadly, feeling her flinch as he slowly slid his hands to her waist. Hot determination flooded his cerulean eyes. _I won't let her stay this way._

Sakura gasped as the blond swung her up in the air, twirling her around in a circle like a little girl as she grabbed onto his shoulders in surprise. "Deidara?!"

The face he turned up to her was clear and happy, devoid of the strange emotions she had seen play across his features earlier.

"Sakura is so light!" he laughed, finally setting her down, breathless and giggling. The hands around her waist pulled her a little closer, almost into a hug. "It's like she has angel wings…"

_He's…he's so close…any closer and he could…_

"Hey, Sakura!"

The girl swallowed a shriek and jumped out of Deidara's arms like a frightened cat. "Hey, Kisame," she greeted, rubbing away at a cheek as if she could smudge out the blush blossoming there. But all was forgotten as she caught sight of what he carried under his arm. "You _surf?_"

"Yeah, so?" the shark-like senior asked, hefting his surfboard.

"I want to join you!"

Kisame snickered. "Sakura, that's cute but you're in a bikini. It'll be hard to learn wearing one of those and I haven't got a wetsuit for you to borrow." His eyes widened slightly as, for the first time since they met her, Sakura flashed him an utterly confident glance.

"Who said I needed to learn? I can surf fine, wetsuit or no wetsuit," she told him, her voice teasing. "I just need a surfboard."

"Here." A sleek, ivory and crimson board thudded into the sand beside her, the bottom decorated with curious black designs that Sakura knew to be called tomoe, with the kanji for "Courage and Peace" stamped down its length.

"Itachi? You don't mind me borrowing your board?"

The dark-haired Uchiha shook his head. "You're a guest," he said as way of explanation.

"Thanks Itachi," she replied, flashing him a heart-stopping smile. "I'll bring it back soon!" And without another backward glance, she grabbed the board and flew down the beach into the water, closely followed by Kisame.

Behind them, Hidan could be heard yelling, "Oi! Kisame, what the hell?! What about the volleyball game? Seriously!"

* * *

"I'm sunburned," Sakura laughed, slathering aloe vera onto her shoulders several hours later.

The group was all back together, tired but cheerful from their day at the beach, loud in the large room they had been given for the night.

"Need any help getting your back?" Deidara asked cheerily, taking he aloe vera bottle from her.

"No, thank you," she replied, cheeks growing warm though she leveled him with a mock-glare. "I didn't burn my back."

"That's a pity, yeah," the blond laughed, trying to drag the sixteen-year-old into his lap.

"Deidara, stop being so friendly," Kisame warned, languishing across the couch.

"Hey, just because you think Sakura's awesome for being able to keep up with you surfing…"

The gill-tattooed boy grinned, dragging himself into a sitting position to reach out and ruffle Sakura's rose-hued hair. "You did good, candy-girl."

"I'm always good," she laughed back, pulling away from them both.

"Hey, what about dinner, Itachi?" Kisame asked, changing the subject.

Itachi, smoothing gel onto his own sunburned skin, shrugged. "I'll ask as soon as I'm…"

"Hey, Itachi-niisan," a voice interrupted from outside. "Have you seen my Chemistry textbook?"

Sakura jumped to her feet, electrified by the familiar voice.

The door to the room pushed open, the speaker stepping into view.

"Sakura?"

A hot blush blossomed across her face as she stood, dressed only in a skimpy bikini, surrounded by the rest of her dorm seated around her in various states of undress, nearly all of them shirtless.

"Sasuke-kun…"

* * *

Hehehehehehe I know, I know, a cliffhanger! I couldn't resist XD

But, on the other hand, I made this chapter kinda longer right? Right? ^^

My muse thrives on cookies so please review! Also, if there's any one Akatsuki member you want to see more scenes of, I'll try to get them more screen time if you let me know who they are ^^

Thank you for reading!


	4. Trying Dramatics

I'll keep this short since I'm sure you're all wondering just what happens now...

Un-beta'd, thanks for the reviews everyone! You guys really keep me motivated to write this fic ^^ AND keep on schedule. I hope you're all happy with this update, even thought it's a tad shorter than the norm (I think...) Plus, for those of you who've got me on author alert (thanks a ton for that, those are a real ego boost XD) will know that I've uploaded another fic! Two updates in one week! I finished writing the first chapter and started on the second but waited so I could upload Belonging and it together XD please check it out! It's another SakuMulti fic, though not a SakuAkatsuki (still has some ItaSaku because I can't resist...)

Disclaimer: Not miiiine, because if it was...if it was...a lot of people would still be alive. *GRINS*

And now, please continue to the important stuff!

* * *

**Chapter 4: Trying Dramatics**

"Sasuke-kun…I…"

His eyes flickered from her to take in the lazing crowd of boys behind her, focusing at last on his older brother, before returning to her. In two steps he was across the room, his hand closing, firm but gentle, around her wrist.

"Itachi-niisan, sorry to have bothered you," Sasuke said, his tone surprisingly mild. "I'm just going to take Sakura."

"Sasuke, she isn't going home," Itachi replied, his voice a light deadpan. The obsidian orbs pulled away from his brother to her, their dark depths boring into emerald eyes. "We'll see you at dinner, Sakura."

Bewildered, she nodded obediently and let her best friend lead her out, closing the door behind them.

It took less than three seconds before a tidal wave of raised, irritable voices began echoing from the other side of the door. But Sakura had rather more pressing things to be concerned over as Sasuke led her a short distance away, then leveled familiar dark eyes to her face.

"Sakura…why are you here?"

_Trust Sasuke to be blunt and to the point, _Sakura groaned mentally, self-consciously tucking a lock of rose-hued hair behind her ear as she faced her friend.

"It's Akatsuki dorm tradition. We go to the beach the Friday before school starts," she explained, feeling strangely timid around her childhood friend. "I'm…I'm in Akatsuki dorm."

Sasuke's dark eyes widened slightly in surprise and the rose-haired sixteen-year-old realized with a jolt that he had not yet made the connection.

Blushing, she hastened to explain, "I'm a scholarship student at Hishin Academy and my contract came with a clause where I have to take on the post of dormitory manager on campus, and the only dorm without a manager was Akatsuki."

The jet-haired boy's brow furrowed, glancing back down the hall at the closed door they had just walked through, as he wrapped a warm arm around her waist. "Sakura, I…"

"I know," she interrupted, grinning with wry understanding as she twined her arms around his neck and rested her forehead against the hollow of his throat. "You don't like it. I'm a little iffy about it myself," she told him honestly. "But I've got to have this scholarship. It's an expensive neighborhood we're living in and I don't want to put a bigger burden on my mom by asking her to pay for my room and board at school." She leaned back, taking him with her as she relaxed against the cool wood of the hallway, Sasuke's body caging hers in a comfortably protective stance.

Guy-shy she might have been, but Sasuke had been her friend since their preschool years. With him she was comfortable, and with her he didn't mind showing a little bit of physical affection.

"Sakura…" He sighed, pressing his own forehead to the top of her rosy mane of hair in an uncharacteristically touching gesture. "I…"

"He's taking forever!" a familiar male voice snapped, growing suddenly louder as the door at the end of the hall was unceremoniously thrust open.

Sakura felt her friend's arms tighten fractionally around her as she stiffened.

"I'm going to…" The blond's voice faded into silence as he took in the sight before him.

The sixteen-year-old felt her cheeks flush until they matched the shade of her hair as she slowly pushed a reluctant Sasuke from her, knowing what they must have looked like.

"Deidara…"

The icy chill that swept down her spine had nothing to do with the low temperature of the hallway and everything to do with the sudden coldness in the blond's cerulean eyes.

"What were you doing to her."

It wasn't even phrased as a question.

Sakura winced internally, trying to force her suddenly racing heart to slow.

"Nothing," she told him quickly. "Nothing-."

"Nothing she didn't want," the dark-haired male interrupted, shifting on his feet as though he wanted to step before the rose-haired girl and shield her from the other's sight.

Sakura stepped out between the two of them, tapping Sasuke's wrist in warning as she brushed past him, before things got out of hand. "Sasuke is my friend, Deidara. I was only explaining why I was in his house with everyone. I hadn't told him I was a member of Akatsuki dorm yet."

The smugness in Deidara's eyes that sparked when she identified herself as an Akatsuki was there and gone in seconds, replaced immediately by a rather sharp hurt that made the emerald-eyed girl bite her lip with an answering ache in her own chest.

"And telling him that involved…you know what, never mind," the blond bit out, shoulders tense as he turned for the door back to the room filled with Akatsuki.

"Deidara, wait!"

Before she realized her own body was moving, she'd crossed the space between them, her hand gripping the sleeve of his t-shirt as though she wouldn't ever let go.

Surprise fluttered through his sky-hued eyes, replacing the earlier coldness with strange warmth that made her stomach knot nervously in response. Considering her previous reactions to his touch, she supposed the fact that she had initiated anything at all was appropriately shocking. "Sakura?"

"I…Sasuke was comforting me," she got out, cursing her pinkened cheeks for their kneejerk reaction. "Y-you know I'm…guy-shy. I…I want to be friends, but it's…kinda rough for me…"

She hadn't been expecting the warm touch of his fingers skating across her cheek in an almost affectionate gesture.

"We'll work on that, yeah?" he urged softly, making her blush deepen until she felt as though her whole face was a mask of crimson.

"Sakura."

Stepping away from Deidara's touch with a calm she didn't feel, she turned to face her best friend with serious emerald eyes. "I'm fine, Sasuke-kun, really," she told him, trying to reassure her overprotective friend. "I'll talk to you after dinner." And with that she pushed Deidara back into the main room, shooting Sasuke an apology-filled glance over her shoulder just before they disappeared from view, leaving a very contemplative dark-haired boy in the hall they'd just vacated.

* * *

"Hey, candy-girl," Kisame greeted as soon as she reappeared, "Ready for dinner?"

"We-we're going like this??" she asked, shocked out of her current bit of gloom over the episode out in the hall at the suggestion that they go while wearing swimsuits.

Sasori shrugged. "We've always done it," he told her, pulling a dark red shirt over his head. "Itachi's parents don't mind."

"I…I'd still like to wear something else…"

"Change quickly," Kisame ordered with a toothy grin. "I'm starving and I like you, candy-girl, but not enough to wait."

Sakura stuck her tongue out at him childishly, grabbed her bag, and disappeared down a hall to a nearby bathroom, not noticing how several members of the dorm tensed at Kisame's words.

For his own part, the shark-featured senior noted who showed signs of agitation at his blunt declaration, feeling a smirk of amusement tug his lips. _Hmmm…a little unexpected…but not entirely._

"Alright, I'm ready…"

It was another dress, making him wonder just how many Sakura had packed away in her beach bag. It had looked as if it couldn't store more than a towel and her sundress from earlier, but now she had on a cute gown falling past her knees in a cream hue that was dotted with many stars of various sizes and differing shades of blue.

"My sort-of aunt, Shizune, likes getting me really girly clothes," Sakura explained, cheeks nearly reaching the color of her hair in embarrassment. "And I feel bad if I don't wear them…"

A warm pair of arms circled her waist, a familiar blond head coming to nuzzle her shoulder from behind. "Yay for sort-of aunt Shizune, yeah," Deidara cheered softly into the cap sleeve that covered her shoulder.

The smirk that had manifested on Kisame's features widened in preparation for Sakura's volatile response, but her usual reaction never came.

His dark eyes widened as she, instead, merely tugged the blond's wrist gently. "Thanks, Deidara…please…let go? This is…'"

And he squeezed and let go.

_What the hell?_

"Let's go to dinner," Sasori deadpanned, covering the awkward moment. "I'm hungry."

Sakura nodded and followed the redhead out the door without complaint, leaving the rest behind to exchange curious glances.

"The hell?" Hidan asked, echoing Kisame's earlier thoughts. "When'd she start acting so close to you, blondie?"

Zetsu shrugged his pale shoulder as they filed out after the other two when it became obvious that Deidara wasn't going to respond. "Deidara was the one who went out to get Sakura…or perhaps Sakura is merely getting over her shyness."

"Damn weird, seriously," the silver-haired senior muttered irritably under his breath.

Kakuzu turned to his roommate to comment on Hidan't lack of ability to pass judgment on what was "weird", and promptly forgot his argument as a sharp cry of surprise filled the hall.

"Why, Sakura-chan!"

"Ah…it looks like Mother has found Sakura," Itachi said, his features still set in a grim expression from watching the rose-haired female of Akatsuki dorm react so calmly to Deidara's cuddling.

"Looks like it," Kisame agreed as the rest of the group rounded a corner and filed into the dining room.

Uchiha Mikoto, Itachi and Sasuke's mother, had her arms wrapped tightly around the strawberry-haired girl, squeezing her in an excited hug. "I had no idea Sasuke-kun was bringing you over today! He should have told me!"

Sakura giggled embarrassedly, blushing as she caught sight of the rest of her dorm standing off to one side. She hoped they would take this as normal behavior between the Uchiha woman and herself. She didn't want to have to explain to them that the dark-haired woman had harbored hopes for a relationship between Sasuke and Sakura since the rose-haired girl's childhood crush on him when they'd been seven.

"I didn't actually come here because Sasuke invited me, Mikoto-san," she said when she was released from the viselike embrace. "I came with my dorm."

"Your…dorm?"

Dark eyes caught sight of the cluster of males standing to one side, and her eyes widened in understanding. "Sakura-chan, you're an Akatsuki?"

The girl blushed under the older woman's curious gaze. "I'm the dormitory manager, Mikoto-san," she explained. "It's part of my scholarship agreement."

"Ah, I see. You should have told me Sakura-chan was going to be living in your dorm, Itachi-kun," the Uchiha mother scolded lightly. "I had no idea."

"I'm sorry, Mother," Itachi apologized easily, his expression caught in a small smile. "I had no idea Sakura was going to be the dorm manager until two days ago."

"And you couldn't call me then?" she asked with a gentle laugh. "Sit here, across from me, Sakura-chan," the woman said, leading the girl to one end of the long dining hall table as she motioned for the others to choose seats as well. "I feel as though we haven't had a chance to talk in such a long time."

"Are they always like this?" Kisame asked incredulously, taking the seat next to Itachi.

"Almost," Sasuke deadpanned as his brother shrugged in response. "Sakura and our mother have been close since…"

"Since you and Naruto brought her to our place when you were five. Mother always wanted a daughter," Itachi explained to his roommate.

"Girls," the blue-skinned man muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, don't insult Sakura, yeah!" Deidara said, coming to the rose-haired girl's defense. "Especially since…" He trailed off and focused on the dinner being served instead.

_Especially since I "like" her? You're too transparent, Deidara_, he thought, allowing himself a surreptitious smirk. The other guys were his friends, but that didn't stop him from being amused. _Well candy-girl, it looks like you're going to have a pretty big headache on your hands later on if you keep charming people like this…_

_

* * *

  
_

"Have you told Naruto that you're in Akatsuki dorm yet?" Sasuke asked, staring across the darkness at the ink-black waves that crashed against the shore.

It was much later; he and Sakura were leaning against the railing of the guestroom balcony as they finally had an uninterrupted talk. There had been no chance of it earlier during dinner, or even after because Sakura had insisted on helping his mother clean up after boys. The sounds of the surf made a continuous background noise to their conversation.

Rose-petal strands, shaded violet in the gloom, tickled her cheeks as she shook her head. "I thought I'd tell him in person…when the two of you went back to your dorm on Sunday," she responded, viridian eyes flickering from him to the dark shore.

"Hn," Sasuke agreed.

The silence between them was comfortable, each wrapped in their own thoughts about the upcoming school year. A gentle breeze cooled them, bringing with it the quiet chatter of late night passerby and the clang of a lighthouse bell off in the distance.

"It was uncomfortable at first," Sakura volunteered, breaking the quiet as she hopped up onto the wide balcony railing to take a seat. "It still is, actually." She cocked her head at the sixteen-year-old boy as his dark eyes flickered to her in curiosity. She knew Sasuke might never ask how she felt about her dorm, unlike their more rambunctious friend Naruto, so she usually just volunteered information.

"But…it's not like they're mean or anything… They're actually pretty nice. They made me dinner the first night, and…I think they're looking out for me…"

On the balcony below them, the silently lounging group of Akatsuki boys exchanged smirks. They'd been eavesdropping on the pair since Sasuke had offered to lead the girl to the room she would be using for the night, unscrupulous as they lazed comfortably on the porch beneath the two.

"You like them."

Sakura blushed under the moonlight as several very interested pairs of ears perked up. "I…I guess? They…they're likable. I don't mind living with them…"

A warm hand pressed her shoulder.

"Good," the dark-haired boy murmured, "Or I'd have to hunt them down."

"You wouldn't!" she gasped, giggling. "They're upperclassmen!"

Sasuke shrugged in an it-doesn't-matter manner that had her laughing into his shoulder.

"No, Sasuke-kun, I'll be fine," she assured him when she was done. "I'll be fine."

A loud knock on the door interrupted any response Sasuke might have had.

"Sakura."

Sasuke flicked a quizzical glance in his friend's direction as she hopped off the balcony rail. "Zetsu? What is it?"

"The others wanted you down for a movie…" he trailed off as he took in her appearance.

It wasn't seductive in any way; the shirt she was wearing was baggy enough to hide her figure, the flannel, moon-and-star print pajama pants long enough to cover her down to her toes. But the shirt was obviously custom, forest green and printed with "Team Seven" in large white letters across her chest, "Membership: Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura" underneath that in smaller lettering.

He raised an eyebrow curiously.

A blush suffused her cheeks as she realized the question in his luminous amber eyes.

"Something from our childhood," she explained quickly, gesturing to the dark-haired boy standing beside her.

"All three of us have one; they're identical. By the way, Sakura," he added nonchalantly as he glanced over to the girl in question. "I think you might be wearing Naruto's shirt. He said he thought they might have gotten mixed up during our camping trip this summer."

Normally, Sakura would have shrugged and made some comment about how the three shirts were identical anyway and did it really matter, but somehow having Zetsu there with that hooded, inquisitive expression on his face, honey-amber eyes widening slightly at Sasuke's words, made her cheeks grow hot with embarrassment.

"I-I'll switch b-back with him when I see you guys on Sunday," she said, a little too quickly as she stepped out the door towards the lean, amber-eyed junior standing in the hallway. "I'd better go before th-the others start to get annoyed…"

"Don't let yourself get walked all over," Sasuke murmured under his breath as he let her wrap her arms around his torso in a hug.

Her snort was audible against his chest. "That's rich, coming from you," she said with a wry chuckle. "You and Naruto had a phase just like this when we were twelve." And with a last grin, she followed the stoic Zetsu off down the hall.

As he watched them go, Sasuke didn't miss the small frown that the older male threw him over his shoulder, those amber eyes seeking out the Uchiha's face, then flickering to the forest green shirt Sakura wore. A smirk fixed itself to the Uchiha's features.

_If _that_ bothers you…_

He and Naruto had left their distinct mark over Sakura's nighttime wardrobe, and considering how much she enjoyed running around in her pajamas, Sasuke was sure the entirety of her dorm was going to know how integral he and the blond were to her life.

_Good.

* * *

_

Ummmmm it's a little shorter than I wanted it to be...and choppier because it's a transition chapter. Maybe I'll edit it later...

Sakura's very Sasuke-and-Naruto themed pajamas continue to make an appearance! And if Sasuke's hint is anything to go by, there are more to come! Please look forward to the next installment of Belonging, and check out the shiny, new Feral Instinct!

Plus, the authoress' muse works very well under the influence of cookies ^^ so you guys know what she likes right? Clicky the button! XD

I probably had too much Halloween candy and/or sugary baked goods lately...


	5. Watchful Eyes

Wahahaha! I'm so excited! I thought I might not be able to upload this on Friday (stupid midterms...) but I finished it! That's just thrilling in and of itself. And now, I must go because I've still got studying to do, writing my Halloween oneshot, editing and uploading the next chapter of A Rose in Glass, gosh I feel busy...

Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer applies, I don't own Naruto, Vampire Knight, or the Socratic method. (does that even BELONG to anyone anymore?)

Forgive me if the chemistry in this chapter is terribly a) easy for a sophomore, b) incorrect to be learned in high school, c) stupid in general, because I've been studying Organic Chemistry and haven't stepped foot in a lab in the last three years. T-T

Other than that, ENJOY!

* * *

**Chapter 5: Watchful Eyes**

"I'll see you tomorrow, Sasuke-kun," she promised, giving her friend an extra squeeze as she made her goodbyes to the Uchiha family. "I'll help you and Naruto organize if you give me a call when you get to campus."

"Mm, I'll see you then," he agreed, the ghost of a smile fluttering over his features.

"Come on, Sakura," a quiet voice behind her said, softly insistent. "The train will leave without us if we don't hurry."

She tossed an apologetic look over her shoulder to the redhead behind her, and nodded. "Bye Sasuke-kun!"

The dark-headed boy's eyes narrowed slightly as he watched his childhood friend hurry after the other boys of Akatsuki dorm. He pulled out his cell phone as they disappeared into the train.

"Oi, teme, why're you calling me so early?" a grumpy voice sounded through the receiver. "It's…not even ten in the morning."

"We need to get to campus early Sunday."

"You're planning on making me wake up early tomorrow morning too?" the blond whined, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"Yes. It's necessary. And make sure you bring all your pajamas."

Naruto stared into the receiver of his cell, wondering if he was hearing things. Perhaps Sasuke wasn't lucid this early in the morning either. "Pajamas?"

"Yeah. All of them. And any of Sakura's that might be lying around at your place."

"Uh okay…any reason for this?" the sixteen-year-old asked, stifling a yawn.

"I'll fill you in later. Come over to my place this evening."

"Summer home or town house?"

"Summer."

"Got it, I'll see you this afternoon. Night."

"…"

"I'm going back to sleep Sasuke-teme. Don't call me for another three hours."

The younger Uchiha didn't even bother replying as he hung up and made his way back home. It wasn't that he didn't like Sakura's housemates; one of them included his brother after all. But she'd been his friend since the two of them were five, and he wasn't blind. He could see the way the others watched her.

"I can't believe I'm getting…overprotective. That's supposed to be Naruto's job," he muttered under his breath.

=*~*~*=

"Home sweet home," Sakura announced in a singsong voice, unaware of the thrill of masculine pride that filled the glances her housemates exchanged with one another behind her back. The night before had been fun and casual, the group of boys really acting like normal guys and putting her at her ease. The evening had made her feel much less wary around them, enough to act a little more like her normal, bubbly self now.

"It's nice to be ba-ACK!"

Pitching forward, she flinched, her eyes squeezed shut as she braced for impact.

A hard arm knocked into her midsection, catching her before she plowed into the ground, face first.

"Hey, candy-girl," Kisame grinned as the girl struggled to catch her breath. "Just because you're eager to get home, doesn't mean you should act like you're walking around blind."

"Thanks, Kisame," the rose-headed girl replied, ignoring his teasing comment. "What'd I trip on?" She glanced up, only to find the group's redhead already inspecting the cardboard package that had been placed just inside the house door.

"It's addressed to you," he said after several long moments of scrutiny, handing over the box as the gill-tattooed male set her on her feet again. "It's from the Headmaster."

"Headmaster?" Sakura echoed, accepting the package. An expression of confusion fluttered over her elfin features as she abandoned her shoes at the doorway, hurrying inside with the box it tow.

"I wonder what it is…"

She looked up in surprise as another's weight dipped the couch. Without any discussion, the rest of her housemates had somehow arranged themselves around her in the house's elegantly furnished living room. Beside her, Hidan occupied the majority of the couch, Kakuzu and Kisame hovering behind her with ill-concealed curiosity. Zetsu lounged in the armchair to her right, Sasori seated on the coffee table in front of her, Deidara at her feet. Itachi, seated on the arm of the couch at her elbow, completed the tableau.

With a shrug, she tore off the packaging paper and opened the box.

"Oh!" she breathed, stunned at the contents.

A small envelope lay atop a beautiful school uniform.

The blouse was crisp and white, with imitation mother-of-pearl buttons down the front. Underneath it, a navy-blue and cream plaid skirt lay, feminine and cute. A cream ribbon to mirror the male uniform's navy tie completed the outfit. An identical uniform was stored further down. A large t-shirt and a small pouch filled the rest of the box.

"What…"

"Ah, Sakura finally has one, yeah!" Deidara piped, pulling the shirt from her to spread it out.

The sixteen-year-old's pale cheeks went hot when she realized that the shirt she had thought was just a blank, black shirt was anything but.

The front was emblazoned with the word Akatsuki in large capital letters, printed in bright red against the black fabric. The back was filled with the red-cloud design that symbolized the dorm.

"Oh…wow…" Flushed with embarrassment, she hurriedly tore open the letter and focused on it instead to escape having to reply.

The missive was written in a large, even hand that seemed a little shaky to her. Wondering just how old the Headmaster of the school was, she scanned the note.

=::=

_Dear Sakura,_

_Enclosed are two sets of the school's uniform; they were paid for in full by your mother. The winter jacket will be on sale in a few months, please let your homeroom teacher know if you would like to order one._

_Please also remember to wear your pin to classes, and tell your mother I said hello._

_Sincerely,_

_Jiraiya._

=::=

She pounced on the more comfortable portions of the letter. She would contemplate the implication that her headmaster was acquainted with her mother for a later time.

"What does he mean by pin?"

"All students of Hishin Academy wear a pin on their collars to distinguish between the dormitories," Zetsu explained calmly. "It's probably in that little pouch there. It was one of the snake-scum's ideas."

Sakura's brows drew together in a dark frown at the mention of her predecessor. "How in the world did he get the idea implemented? It sounds like it'd be an excuse to form cliques…" Her words died away as she considered what her housemates were like. _'A clique is basically what they are…that or a gang…'_

"He was the Headmaster's friend from when they were younger, apparently," Sasori replied, violet eyes carefully blank.

"Oh…"

"So, you gonna put on that damn uniform now? Seriously," Hidan asked, breaking the darkening mood.

The girl raised an eyebrow, even as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment at the thought of modeling her new outfit for them. "No, you can all look on Monday when we go to school."

Snatching up her box, she jumped to her feet and hurried off without another backward glance, leaving a crestfallen group of boys behind her.

=*~*~*=

"You're WHAT?!"

Sakura winced, squinting her eyes as she waited for the wave of protests to die down after the first cry of shock. _'Well, Naruto seems a little upset…'_ she thought sardonically, trying not to let amusement blossom across her features. She was pretty sure that would not go down well with her blond and currently red-faced friend.

Finally, his recriminations died down.

"I can't believe you're in Akatsuki!" he said, tone now more sulky than anything else.

She shrugged as she pulled her fingers from her ears. "It's not like it was my choice," she reminded him, letting her humor finally show. She wrapped her arms around his waist, giggling as he squeezed her tightly back.

"You realize that is the only reason why we are not more annoyed," Sasuke stated from behind her.

The strawberry-haired girl rolled her eyes and grinned. "Yeah, yeah, so you tell me." She pulled away from her blond friend and settled on the floor cross-legged.

The three of them were lounging about in Naruto and Sasuke's dorm room, the two boys dressed in casual clothes while she sat nestled between two large suitcases in only her pajamas. Then again, they'd been up early to avoid the rush before all the other students of Konoha dorm had arrived, and she'd woken up maybe half an hour ago and snuck out in the same clothes she'd slept in to avoid any further confrontations between her housemates and her two best friends.

Her experience at the Uchiha house had been highly educational.

Suffice to say, she would try to avoid creating any contact between the two groups until she could talk them around into playing nice. _'Boys…'_

"Oh yeah, here," she added, flinging a shirt at Naruto who caught it reflexively. "Sasuke-kun said our shirts got swapped."

"Hey! It's the old Team 7 shirt!" Naruto laughed, holding the garment out at arms length. "Yeah, Sakura-chan, this is mine. _This_ is why you wanted me to bring all my pajamas to school, teme?"

"Hn."

Discarding the Team 7 shirt that had been delineated as his, Naruto opened up one of his suitcases to messily rummage through it until he pulled out an almost identical shirt. "Here, Sakura-chan! This one must be yours." He laughed, tossing the shirt to her as he admired the other one. "It sure brings back memories, doesn't it?"

"Of how we made a 'Team' when we were kids, choosing to number it seven because it was _your_ favorite number?" Sakura retorted with a small grin.

The two brightly-colored teens laughed as the dark-haired one chuckled quietly alongside them, remembering their childhood escapades.

"I still can't believe you're in Akatsuki," Naruto muttered when their laughter had subsided. "I thought you'd be here, with us."

"Me too," the rose-haired girl replied, quirking her lips wryly. "Sometimes I still can't believe it. But…it's not that bad…"

The blond boy tugged her up onto his bed, wrapping his arms around her waist in a brotherly gesture. "If they try anything…anything at all…"

She smacked his arm with a small giggle, even as she laid her head on his shoulder. "You idiot," Sakura mock-chided him. "I'm going to go now; you've got no reason to be so…defensive of me." She disentangled herself from his arms

"Of course I do, Sakura-chan," Naruto retorted smugly as he let her go. "You're one of my best friends and you're living in a dormitory full of guys! Guys you don't know!" A tiny, fake cough broke through his words. Cerulean eyes flickered to the dark-haired sixteen-year-old. "Except for teme's brother of course," he corrected with a roll of his eyes.

"Regardless," the viridian-eyed girl replied, shrugging a slim shoulder. "I'm going to go…see you guys later!"

"Why are you in such a hurry, don't you love us, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura made a teasing face at her friend's mock-miserable whine. "I'm making breakfast for my dorm today as a thank-you for the beach trip. Gotta go!" She fled the scene before Naruto could indignantly demand she make him breakfast too.

In her wake, the blond's brow wrinkled, the irritation he'd been hiding from her showing too clear on his boyish features. "I really don't like this, Sasuke," he muttered, arms crossing over his chest as he regarded his roommate with glowering sky-blue eyes. "Even if one of those guys is your brother."

Sasuke shrugged as if to communicate that he felt similarly and didn't mind Naruto's declaration of dislike.

"So now what?"

A slow, almost frightening, smirk began to unfurl across the dark-haired teen's features. "Now, I explain to you why I wanted you to bring so much clothing."

=*~*~*=

"Hey, look at her pin!"

"No way, she's an Akatsuki?!"

"What the hell?"

"She's like their dorm manager or something."

"Y'mean like their French maid."

_'This is total discrimination!'_ Sakura fumed, trying to ignore the pervasive whispering that echoed through the halls as she passed. _'They weren't like this earlier!'_

But earlier she'd been walked to the office, her locker, and taken on a quick tour of the sophomore sector by various members of her dorm. Now she was finding her way to class alone, having insisted on the boys leaving her on her own for a while, and her spectators had grown bold.

"How long do you think it'll be until she's sleeping with one of them?"

_'Just shut up!'_ her mind snapped as she picked up her pace and finally arrived at her classroom.

"Ah, Sakura-chan!"

The cold lump in her stomach melted away like a snowball in summertime under the warmth of the blond that cannoned into her. She leaned into his embrace with a relieved giggle.

"Hey, Naruto-kun."

"Oi, move along! Nothing here to see!" her best friend snapped at her anonymous tormentors, cerulean eyes daring them to comment as he ushered Sakura into their classroom.

"Thanks, Naruto-kun," she said earnestly as she extricated herself from the excited boy's grasp. "Wow…nice classroom…"

It was furnished in a lecture hall style, complete with a desk-lectern combination in front of the blackboard that ranged across an entire wall of the chamber. An aisle bisected the oaken rows that reminded her of the classrooms illustrated in one of her favorite manga series', Vampire Knight. There were a few students scattered throughout the class, a guy wrapped in a fur-edged jacket sleeping in the back row, a blonde girl on the right side flipping carelessly through the pages of a notebook, a dark-eyed brunette lost to the world, earphones stuffed in her ears.

"Yeah, come on, Sasuke and I sit over here," the fox-faced boy told her cheerfully, pulling her towards a series of right-hand seats in the third row.

"How was your first week here, in Akatsuki?" Naruto asked softly as soon as they were seated. "They didn't…" his voice lowered, sky-blue eyes turning serious, "try anything, did they?"

"Naruto!" she hissed, cheeks crimson more because of how close to the truth he'd struck than her own embarrassment that he'd mentioned it in class. Enough people had filled the room to give them a blanket of idle chatter to talk under without being heard.

In a flash she chould feel every touch the boys of her dorm had imparted on her body; Deidara's lips nuzzled her neck as Sasori's hands skimmed up her sides, Hidan's body pressing against her front, Zetsu swinging her around in a circle with his arms wrapped around her waist while Kisame ruffled her hair and the warmth of Itachi's back and shoulders soaked into the palms.

Relief flooded through her because, at the moment Naruto's expression turned worriedly quizzical, the third member of their trio chose that moment to settle into the seat on her other side.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun," she greeted hastily, forcing her blushing cheeks to cool as she thanked Kami that it was an easier task to accomplish around her best friends than it had been around her housemates.

He muttered a similar reply as the bell for class sounded.

Sakura's eyes flickered to the front of the room. "Hey, where's our homeroom teacher?"

The two boys exchanged nonchalant shrugs. "No idea," the blond quipped as the chatter around them grew louder. "Kakashi-sensei always comes to homeroom late."

"A homeroom teacher who's always late to class?" she muttered incredulously. "What the heck?"

"It saves us, and him, from having to waste half of the fifteen minutes we get trying to think of something to do in that time," Sasuke explained blandly. "No one minds."

And it looked to be true. None of the students seemed too concerned at their teacher's tardiness. So she settled into her seat and pulled out a book and hoped that no one else would think to make comments about her dormitory while they waited for their teacher.

Surprisingly, she didn't have long to wait.

Five minutes later, the classroom door opened and a man stepped through to a chorus of "You're late!"

"Yo," he greeted casually, waving a roster at his students. "I was picking up the new student roster because we've got a new student today…"

She should have been paying attention, she was usually good at doing that in class, but she was too confused by the surgical mask and the strangely gravity-defying silvery hair. The color didn't actually bother her; she couldn't be one to talk when her own tresses were naturally pink.

"Sakura."

It was the surgical mask that really bothered her. If he was sick he really shouldn't be coming to class. Hishin Academy was wealthy enough to afford a substitute for a day; it was hardly necessary for an ill teacher to teach in his condition.

"Sakura-san…"

The shift of his hair revealed that a long scar ran down his left eye, bisecting the crimson orb. _'His eyes are…so familiar…'_

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

She rocketed out of her seat, startled out of her internal monologue by Naruto's overly loud hiss and a distinct elbow in her side courtesy of Sasuke. Every eye in class was on her, their expressions plainly saying that the teacher had been calling her name for quite a while. A crimson haze settled over her features like a scarlet fog; the rushing blood to her face making her temples pound.

"S-sorry, sensei," she apologized hastily as she made her way to the front of the class.

"Okay then, Sakura-san," he continued on, acting as though she hadn't just zoned out on him. "Please introduce yourself to the class."

The eyes of her fellow classmates pinned her like an entomologist's butterfly to the floor. Swallowing hard, she contrived to force down the hot flush in her cheeks. Nails dug into palms as she began, "My name is Haruno Sakura…"

=*~*~*=

"Sakura."

"Sa…Sasori?"

He seemed unsurprised to see her, or at least a good deal less surprised to see her than she was to see him, but then, she had no idea what any of her housemates' schedules were. They, on the other hand, had all taken a good look at hers when she'd gotten it at the office that morning.

"Come, you will sit by me."

She should have been more annoyed at his imperious assumption that she would just choose to sit with him, but the embarrassing incident of her first homeroom period were still fresh in her mind, even after her Sophomore History class with Kakashi-sensei (possibly because she hadn't had a chance to leave the classroom and most of her homeroom classmates were also in her history course, taught by the same man). She was just relieved to be on somewhat more predictable ground. She hoped that by sitting unobtrusively with him at one of the lab stations towards to back of the classroom, she would avoid being singled out yet again in front of another group of students she didn't know.

"What's this class like?" she asked, trying to fill the silence between them. "Hard?"

The redhead beside her shrugged, violet eyes bland. "You should come to your own conclusions rather than have your perceptions colored by my opinions."

_'Well that's really welcoming…' _her mind supplied sarcastically, feeling a little stung at his deadpanned words.

Uncertain of how to react, she was saved from answering for the second time that morning by the entrance of the teacher.

The room went silent; Sasori beside her stiffened, in anger or something else she couldn't tell.

An uneasy shiver lanced down her spine.

The man was too pale to be healthy, almond-shaped eyes a luminous shade of amber and too elongated too look fully human, his lengthy, lank ebony hair falling down past his shoulders. He wasn't unattractive, his features were sharp and fine-boned and might not have been too out of place on a model, but the stifling aura of arrogance and power than rolled off of him was nearly suffocating. It was almost like a physical force that pushed her away.

"Welcome to another year." His voice was quiet, sibilant in quality, and Sakura felt goosebumps erupt over her arms. "For those of you who have not taken Introductory Chemistry with me last year, my name is Orochimaru, but you will refer to me as sensei at all times. Failure to do so will not be tolerated." A cruel smile swept his lips as he continued, "And now, to test that you are all up to par, I will conduct a pop quiz by the Socratic method. What laboratory method is used to discern when a solution of mixed sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid has been successfully turned into salt water?"

His eyes swept the classroom, filled with malicious amusement. She flinched; his eyes were slitted like a snake's, and in that instant she _knew_ who it was standing there at the front of the room and just why his name had seemed so familiar to her.

Her elbow knocked into her pencil.

It happened in slow motion, emerald eyes flying to the writing utensil as it rolled, agonizingly, across the blue-grey surface of the lab table, off the edge, tumbling over and over as it fell. The clatter of it as it hit the floor was infinitely loud in her ears.

His eyes darted to her, taking her in, that cruel smile widening further.

"Ah yes, our new student. Answer the question, Haruno-san."

* * *

The plot thickens! ...Well...sort of anyway...this is sort of the introduction to the introduction to the plot (and yes, i wrote introduction twice on purpose).

In other news, I made new page breaks! My awesome beta Ginkan advised me to make some, and I like them! Anyway, anyone wanna try guessing the answer to Orochimaru's chem question? Cookies for you if you guess right...(forgive me if the question is too easy and offends your sensibilities...it was the only thing I could remember from general chemistry...all chem in my head now consists of stuff like esters and phenyl rings and...and...*SOB*)

The muse hopes you will review because all comments help the authoress become a better writer! Sorry I skipped ahead and didn't cover more of Sunday, I really wanted to get the plot moving ^^ les-liaisons-dangereuses' review made me realize that, at the moment, Belonging resembles a plotless harem fic. There IS a plot here, under all the lighthearted fluff and happiness, and I wanted to let it out a little! Hopefully this little tidbit will keep you guys interested in reading more XD

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Watchful Eyes (chapter title) refers to everyone who was watching/watching over Sakura today. Naruto and Sasuke, her housemates, the anonymous individuals who scorned her, Orochimaru...


	6. Frigidity

Heeyyyy! Sorry for the late update (and the shorter chapter ^^;) I was working on my Halloween fic, The Haunting, this entire week and didn't get a chance to work on Belonging at ALL... On the other hand, I DID write this ENTIRE chapter in a day ^^

Shameless plug: Please go see what I was working on that made me not able to upload this until today! It's an eerie Halloween ficcie with KakaSaku, ItaSaku, and NaruSaku! Also, donate cookies to the muse! She even has a name now! Hatake Yukari, named that not (just) because I'm a KakaSaku fan, but because she somehow ended up with silver hair and green eyes and I didn't realize how much she sounded like their kid until afterwards...

Disclaimer: You know the drill...

Yukari says ENJOY!

* * *

**Chapter 6: Frigidity**

"Answer the question, Haruno-san."

Her heart plummeted into her stomach. This was the last thing she'd wanted, drawing attention to herself from the man who had been dubbed "snake-scum" by the other members of her dorm. But the question itself was something she knew how to answer, and, with a reassuring glance to Sasori she focused on the man at the front of the room and gave her response.

"First off, you should add an indicator, I think most people use phenolpthalein, and then slowly add one substance to the other in a process known as-,"

"Titration," he interrupted, cold, cruel eyes shooting her an unforgiving look as an ugly arrogance blossomed over his features. "We do not need you to give us an entire lecture; if you do not know the answer, do not waste my time and the time of everyone where attempting to cover it up by being long-winded."

_'But I DID know the answer! I just didn't think you wanted me to leave anything out!'_ Sakura's parted lips clamped shut to keep her angry thoughts from spilling out.

"You are forgiven, Haruno-san; after all, you are a new student. But I think I shall have to keep an eye on your progress," he said, a chilling smile pulling his thin lips.

She gritted her teeth as she bent to grab her fallen pencil. There was no chance now of escaping his notice. She would have to be better than ever in Chemistry if she was going to survive this class.

"Haruno-san."

"Yes, sensei?"

He sent her another thin smile, the look in his eyes clearly expectant.

Another shot of anger sliced through her.

_'Scum.'_

"Oh. Yes. Thank you sensei."

She hated the triumph in his smirk.

=*~*~*=

"Hey."

Sakura lifted her head from her desk; she'd been too tired to really do anything after the grueling session that had been her chemistry class. A boy stood beside her desk, every line of his body speaking volumes of boredom. "Hi."

"Were you assigned to this seat?"

Her eyes flickered to the teacher, a genial, bearded individual who waved at them. "Yeah."

"Ah."

She finally straightened as he sank into the seat next to her, leaning back with his fingers laced behind his head, the picture of relaxation. "My name's Sakura."

"Shikamaru." A single eye opened to regard her keenly before he continued. "What year are you in?"

Sakura grimaced at the question. "Sophomore."

His reaction was predictable. He sat up a little, both eyes now open to look at her consideringly, but his next words were the biggest surprise. "Me too." He cracked the smallest smile.

That was all it took.

An answering smile lit Sakura's face, made up of too much pent up relief and frustration. "I'm glad I'm not…" but the words faded away as she noticed him scrutinizing the pin fastened to the collar of her blouse. _'Oh great…now he's not going to want to talk to me anymore…'_

"Glad you're not what?"

"Huh?"

_'Wasn't he going to blow me off like everyone else?'_ But she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. If he was willing to ignore something like dormitories, she could do the same. He bore Konoha's dorm pin, but she wasn't going to let that influence her.

"Glad I'm not the only sophomore," she finished easily. "Most sophomores don't take calculus."

"I wouldn't have but…" and for the second time during their conversation, one of them stopped talking.

A shadow loomed behind her.

"Sakura."

She swiveled around in her seat, the smile beginning to blossom across her features melting into a frown at the grim expression mirrored on their faces. "Kakuzu, Zetsu. Hi."

"Why are you sitting here?" the younger of the two, the green-haired male, asked without preamble.

The frown marring her brow deepened slightly. "Asuma-sensei assigned me here."

"You should move."

_'What is going on?? They didn't act like this yesterday. Or this morning!'_ She gave them a noncommittal shrug. "No thanks, I'm fine where I am."

"Sakura…"

"Zetsu, Kakuzu, it's nice to see you both getting to know our newest member, but I need you to take a seat."

Several curious pairs of eyes flickered to her, and Sakura suppressed the urge to sink lower into her seat. _'Great. More attention. Just what I need.'_

"So. You get along with your housemates."

She tossed the brunet beside her a wry smile. There seemed to be no sarcasm in his voice, just a mild curiosity, and for that she was thankful. "Sort of," she mumbled in a quiet voice, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment and sudden diffidence.

_'And here I thought I was finally getting over being guy-shy. No such luck. Some guy shows me a few seconds of kindness and I'm back to blushing and babbling. Just great…'_

"Th-they aren't usually like that…"

"Maybe not to you."

She blinked, her verdant eyes flickering over to the male beside her, curious and questioning. Checking to make sure Asuma-sensei wasn't paying any attention to the two of them, she lowered her voice further. "Wh-what do you mean?"

The boy beside her rolled his shoulder in a shrug. "You probably got a bunch of flak from everyone here as you were walking down the halls. It's because Akatsuki dorm has a reputation. They're managed by Orochimaru-sensei and don't associate with other people much."

"Were managed by the sn-I mean, Orochimaru-sensei."

He raised an eyebrow.

"I'm the new Akatsuki dorm manager."

A sudden grin flashed over his features, erasing all the boredom there. "Looks like you guys have been having a busy summer." He shook his head at her questioning glance. "Let's get started on these practice _problems_," he said, directing her attention to the review questions up on the board.

"Sure…so the derivative here is…"

She pushed back the tendril of confusion that laced around her gut at his strange behavior as she concentrated on the math problems. _'What was that all about?'_

=*~*~*=

"What a day…" Sakura groaned, letting her forehead rest against the cool metal of her locker. She had discovered just how many classes her dorm members were in with her, and how strangely they behaved outside of their dorm. Even Deidara had faced her with less of his usual warmth, and it stung. The only individuals who didn't have any classes with her were Itachi and Kisame, but from what she had seen she could only assume they would have treated her with more icy coldness. The thought burned a lump in her throat. "Stupid…stupid…"

"Hey, do you mind scooting over a little?"

Sakura jerked back, moving away from the girlish voice behind her. A blonde with clear blue eyes regarded her without malice, but without any real interest either. Keen cerulean focused on the red-cloud pin at her throat.

"Hey! You're the new Akatsuki girl. The one in Shika's Calc class, right?"

The rose-haired girl blinked. That was the second person to ignore the pin-label on her collar; it was actually a little disorienting, though she did appreciate it. "Yeah, that's me…"

"Yamanaka Ino," she introduced herself as she opened the locker to Sakura's right and began pulling out some notebooks in a business-like manner. "Nice to meet you."

"Um…nice to meet you too." She let viridian eyes glance towards the blonde and away, contemplative. Ino seemed like the kind of no-nonsense girl Sakura would like being friends with, and would possibly know more about the strange behavior of the Akatsuki that Shikamaru had hinted about in class. Coming to a decision, Sakura crammed the last of her textbooks into her backpack and turned to the other girl.

"Hey, you know Shikamaru…right?" she began tentatively, gauging the other girl's reaction. "He mentioned the Akatsuki are kind of distant?"

"Oh yeah!" Ino agreed with an emphatic nod. "They tend not to associate with most of the other people in classes, they keep to themselves, and they…"

Sakura groaned internally, recognizing the symptoms. She turned slowly, vaguely wondering which one of her housemates had shut up her new friend. Blond hair answered her question. "Hi Deidara."

"Sakura, come, let's go home, yeah."

Ino gently tapped the other girl's hand, catching her attention. "I'll see you around, okay?" she said evenly, turning back to her locker.

_'Crap…'_ Sakura thought sadly, her emerald eyes lingering on the girl whose attention was now focused solely on the contents of her bag. "Yeah…see you tomorrow…" The rose-haired girl smiled apologetically; then bit her lip, feeling a curl of anger blossom in the pit of her stomach as she let Deidara lead her away.

She was so focused on her own growing irritation that she didn't notice the sympathetic glance Ino threw in her direction as she walked away, or that the blonde was soon joined by the brunet she had met in Calculus, as well as her blond and dark-haired two best friends.

"So that's Sakura?"

The blond nodded, watching his strawberry-haired best friend walk off, frowning at the stiff set of her shoulders. "Yeah, that's Sakura-chan."

"I like her," Ino stated frankly, her pitying look melting into an expression of mischievous cheerfulness. "And you might be right. Those Akatsuki boys need to be brought down a peg or two if they think they can just treat her like a nice possession because she's their housemate." She crossed her arms over her chest with a smirk, ignoring the brunet's muttered groan of "So troublesome…" as she gave an emphatic nod. "I'm in."

An equally smug look crossed Sasuke's pale, aristocratic features. "Perfect."

=*~*~*=

"Oi, what the heck happened today?" Kisame demanded. "Candy-girl hasn't come out of her room since she came home!"

The males of Akatsuki dorm were sitting around in the house's common room, attending what Kisame secretly called to himself the 'Akatsuki Haruno Sakura Committee' meeting. In reality it was just that when the guys got time to themselves the topic of conversation had recently begun involving their newest dorm member, but it amused him to call it that nonetheless. He had to admit, privately, that he had probably started it all the day he had set up the Rules about how they ought to behave around Sakura.

"Maybe one of us should go talk to her," Sasori suggested, already rising to his feet. "I'll do it. She didn't seem to happy after class with…with the snake-scum."

Kisame's dark eyes narrowed, a snarl forcing its way past his throat. "Orochimaru. No wonder. Tell us, Sasori," he demanded as the others flashed equally angry expressions at the thought of their former dorm manager.

Sasori sighed, his attempt at comforting Sakura thwarted as he sank back into his seat.

"Kisame, I'll go in Sasori no danna's place, yeah," Deidara suggested, his normally cheerful cerulean eyes grim. "Sasori no danna can tell me about what happened later, yeah."

The shark-like male nodded curtly, turning back to the redhead's description of the events that had occurred in Sakura's chemistry class.

Only a single dark-haired male noticed the expression that graced Sasori's features for a millisecond, or the tense set of the blond's shoulders as he disappeared up the stairs and around the corner to head for the girl's room.

Sakura was just finishing up her homework when the uncertain knock echoed through her room. "Yes?"

"Sakura…"

She paused, her fingers tightening around the pencil in her hand. "Y-yeah, Deidara?"

"Hey…can you come out, yeah? I wanted to talk to you…"

A thrill of nervousness skated down her spine as she pushed back her chair and slipped to the door. Taking a calming breath, she opened her door.

Deidara smiled wryly, taking in her innocent appearance. She was wearing the Team 7 pajama shirt again, along with tomato-print pants, but her eyes were anything but adorable. They flickered warily from his face to the floor, making the sick feeling in his gut twist further.

"Hey, Deidara…"

"What's up, yeah?" he asked, trying to inject his usual good humor into his voice. "You've been acting funny since we got home. The other guys are getting worried, yeah."

"It's nothing, Deidara," she told him flatly, still avoiding his eyes. "If that's all…"

His fingers caught the edge of her door as she tried to shut it. "Saku…Sakura-chan…" His voice was a soft plea in the deserted hallway.

"You guys were…_different_," she whispered, her voice tight with unhappiness. "I was around people I didn't know…and you guys…changed. It was like I didn't know how to act around you anymore…"

Deidara's chest tightened, a twinge of pain flashing through him at the ache in her voice, as if she was trying really hard not to be upset. That, more than anything else, burned at his conscience. She'd been confused and obviously hurt by the change in her housemates' demeanors. And doubtless the other students had been wary of associating with her because of the Akatsuki pin on her school uniform.

"Sakura…"

His arms came up involuntarily to wrap around her, and though she stiffened at the contact, he didn't let go.

"Sakura…I'm sorry, yeah. We're all sorry. We didn't consider how it would be for you, yeah, and we just did what we usually do…"

And slowly, slowly, she relaxed in his arms.

The knot in his throat unraveled, a strangely warm feeling flooding his chest.

"You guys…didn't mean it?"

"Of course not, yeah!" he said hotly, everything in him rebelling against the timidity in her voice. _'Damn, it's all our faults! She was just beginning to open up…'_ He unwrapped one of his arms from around her waist, gently lifting her chin to let her see the earnestness in his own cerulean eyes. "You're one of us, Sakura. We would never do that to one of us, yeah."

The smile she turned to him was soft and diffident, with he could see the spark of her usual good humor returning in her emerald green eyes. "Yeah…"

"I think we're going to order a pizza for dinner, yeah, so if you don't want to come down yet, we're eating in about an hour okay?"

"Okay, Deidara…and Deidara," she called, stopping him as he turned to go. "Thanks for coming up to talk to me."

"No problem, yeah," he returned with as much cheer as he could muster. "No problem." And with that he made his way downstairs.

The others were angrily plotting death to their former dorm manager, but they fell silent when he appeared, stunned by the uncharacteristically grim expression on the usually bubbly blond.

Deidara ground his teeth together in the still silence before turning angry, self-depreciating sapphire eyes at his housemates.

"We need to talk."

* * *

Oooh, Dei-chan's angry...XD

There's been a lot of Deidara recently it seems...and this means I'm going to be giving Sakura lots of moments with the other members of her house (as well as Itachi because he's just...just...because he's ITACHI!) Anyway, hope you enjoyed this semi-transitional chapter, and is anyone _else_ curious to know what Sasuke and Naruto seem to have up their sleeves? They've even dragged Ino into it... Sorry about having no new cool Sakura pajamas, but fear not, they WILL return! Next chapter!

The muse likes cookies! Please review ^^


	7. Nothing Inconsequential

Yay! The next chapter of Belonging is up! Congratulations to Geniusly-Unique for being the 100th reviewer for the fic and winning a super secret scene-prize! I hope you like how it turned out! The next no-longer-quite-so-secret review prize goes to the person who catches my 150th! (...maybe I'm being too optimistic? ^^; I may never reach 150 XD and if the 150th is an anonymous reviewer who doesn't leave me means to contact them, it'll go to the 151st reviewer ^^)

Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: Sadly none of the Naruto characters are mine.

* * *

**Chapter 7: Nothing Inconsequential**

"Hey, watch it, Sasuke-teme!" a voice hissed in pain as a foot dug painfully into a cranium.

"Shut up, dobe, do you want us to get caught?" another voice replied. "Damn, how come the only window open is on the second floor?" The dark-haired figure slid into his brother's dorm room.

It was a strange dichotomy of organized chaos.

The beds were made, one somewhat more messily than the other, but made nonetheless. Both desks reflected the room occupants' study habits, various textbooks and papers lying open on their smooth, oaken surfaces. The closet in one corner was open, but the clothes inside were neat and organized, Itachi's on one side, his roommate's on the other. Even their discarded clothes on the floor were arranged in orderly piles at the foot of their beds. Their bookshelf was a strange mix of personal-choice fiction and school reading.

"Oi, teme!"

Grimacing at the loudness of his roommate's voice, Sasuke turned back to the open window and snatched the overfull backpack Naruto threw up at him out of midair. The bag fell to the floor with a soft flump as the dark-haired teen helped the blond up over the sill after.

"You and your brother…" Naruto interjected, cerulean eyes sweeping over the room. "Both of you are still such neat freaks in spite of rooming with messy people. Honestly, I'm surprised you guys haven't gone insane yet."

"I'm hanging on to my sanity by a tenuous thread," Sasuke ground out with a withering roll of his eyes as he tossed the backpack to his blond roommate. "Now come on, we don't have much time."

"So…explain this to me again," Naruto demanded as they quietly slunk up the stairs to the third floor and Sakura's bedroom.

"I'm not going over Shikamaru's whole long spiel all over again, we don't have time if we're going to finish this before classes start…we waited long enough for everyone to get out of the house. What we're working on is the first stage; we're going to replace Sakura's clothes."

"…Oh."

"You don't have any idea what that means, do you."

"Seems pretty dumb," the blond scoffed, rubbing the whisker marks on his cheeks out of habit. "We all wear school uniforms."

"Guys, dobe," Sasuke said with a roll of his eyes, "are territorial. You should know, you've been chasing guys away from Sakura since we were five."

"Yeah but that's because those guys were losers!" Naruto argued indignantly, earning himself a smack and a "Shut up, dobe! This is the Akatsuki dorm, you baka, and just because no one's here doesn't mean people outside can't hear us! Do you want us to get caught?" from his roommate.

"Those Akatsuki guys are going to see Sakura as theirs because she's the Akatsuki dorm manager, and by making sure she has plenty of clothes that remind them of _us_, they'll remember that she doesn't belong to _them_ at all."

"… And _I'm_ the territorial one?"

"Shut up."

"Yeah, whatever," Naruto laughed as he picked the lock to Sakura's door and let them inside. "So all we have to do is fill Sakura's drawers with this stuff?"

"Yeah." Sasuke pulled the door of her closet door open and flashed a rare grin. "Good to know Sakura still has this habit of hers." The closet floor was littered with sweatshirts and pajamas. "She's never been good at doing her laundry until she's got next to nothing to wear."

They pulled various shirts and pajama bottoms, sweatshirts and the occasional hat, from the backpack and dumped them with the pile at the bottom of the closet.

"Good?"

"Yeah, let's get out of here now, we're going to be late to school."

The two sophomore boys went back the way they came, sharing mischievous grins, the first part of their mission completed.

=*~*~*=

"Sakura."

The rose-haired girl jumped in surprise, blushing at her reaction, as she scrambled not to drop her notebook. "H-hey, Sasori…"

Violet eyes swept over her, making the hair on the back of her neck tingle in response as the redhead slowly offered her a hand.

"Let me take your notebook, I would like to walk with you to class."

Jade eyes widened in surprise, the girl losing her grip on the spiral-bound.

Sasori gave her a wry smile as he scooped the book up off the ground. "Come on, we'll get in trouble if we're late."

"O-okay…" she responded, still flushed as she followed her redheaded housemate, skin prickling with unease as quiet whispers began to erupt behind them. _'Th-this is _completely_ not like yesterday…'_

"Did you do the chemistry homework okay?" Sasori asked offhandedly as they made their way down the hall. "It's rare for a sophomore to be in general level Chemistry but I didn't get a chance to ask you about it yesterday."

"It was fine," she reassured him with a faint smile. "My…my mom's drilled me in that stuff a lot because she knows I want to be a doctor like her, so I didn't have a problem with it."

"We should work together next time."

Emerald eyes shone at the idea. "I'd…I'd like that."

"Homework assignments on my desk. Lab manuals are in the back; I expect you to be done by the end of class."

"Get our lab manuals," Sasori commanded softly. "I'll turn in our homework."

He was gone before she could reply, and though she might have argued had it been any other class, he was essentially giving her an excuse not to get any closer to their teacher. She slipped away to the back of the classroom and came back with two manuals as Sasori returned to their lab table.

"Let's get started," Sasori told her, taking one of the manuals. "The sooner we get done, the sooner we can leave."

"That should just about do it," Sakura said nearly forty minutes later as their solution finally stayed the palest shade of pink instead of swirling back clear. "We're good."

"I'll start cleaning up, do you mind writing down the figures in my notebook as well as yours?" Sasori asked as he began collecting up the beakers and chemical bottles they'd been using.

"No problem," Sakura answered lightly, already scribbling down numbers in her own lab notebook.

She'd finished her list and just moved on to writing down the figures in the redhead's notebook when a shadow fell across the paper.

"Haruno-san."

_'Crap,'_ she thought, flinching involuntarily as she glanced up into the cruelly smiling eyes of her chemistry teacher. "Y-yes, sensei?"

"Haruno-san, you are aware of the school's policy of academic honesty, correct?"

"I…I wasn't…" she stammered, cheeks growing hot with embarrassment.

"Sensei, I asked her to write down our numbers while I put away our lab materials."

"How very noble of you, Akasuna-san," Orochimaru said silkily, gazing down on the pair of them with coldly cruel eyes. "I realize you feel obligated to protect your fellow housemate, but I'm certain Haruno-san is a big enough girl to take her punishment." He smiled thinly.

Her skin prickled hotly as she realized that he was giving her a chance to protest. _'Just so you can give me _more_ punishment later? I don't think so!'_ her mind snarled furiously as she set down her pen with the barest of unhappy shivers. "Yes, of course, sensei."

The slight disappointment in his eyes was gratifying as she surreptitiously trod on Sasori's toes to keep him from saying anything more. This was between her and Orochimaru. She would have to deal with it herself.

"My office at lunch, Haruno-san," he told her with thinly veiled contempt. "Do not be late."

She kept her face blank as she met his amber gaze with glass-green eyes.

"Yes, of course, sensei."

=*~*~*=

"Come in, Haruno-san."

She hated the idea of being in the same room as the snake-scum who was quickly turning one of her favorite classes into a waking nightmare, but more than that she didn't want to be there with any of her friends. This wasn't their battle to fight, and she already knew just how devastating something like this that pulled people in, could possibly.

_'All-girls schools can give you that kind of education,'_ she thought wryly. _'Fantastic lessons in underhandedness.'_

With a calming breath, she pushed open the door, glad that she had managed to shake off her fellow dorm members as well as Naruto and Sasuke.

He was sitting at his desk, alone in the teachers' office, lank, dark hair spilling down his back as he typed a note on his computer.

"Come here, Haruno-san."

"Yes, sensei."

"Now tell me, how should I best punish you?" he asked, amber eyes lighting with sadistic humor as he questioned her. "Dropping you from my class? Suspension?"

_'For what you "think" is a case of copying?!'_

"Ah, cat got your tongue?" he sneered. "Well then, here's what I think, girl. I think you should be suspended from extracurricular activities for this week." His smirk grew at the look of pain in her viridian eyes.

"B-but!"

"But the clubs are all recruiting this week and if you can't attend club activities you won't be able to become part of the clubs? I believe that is _your_ trouble, isn't it?"

She bit her lip as she struggled not to let her feelings show on her face. She'd been looking forward to participating in the gymnastics club, but she wouldn't even get the chance with his punishment.

"So I guess that-,"

"Yo, Orochimaru-sensei. Disciplining another student?"

She half-turned as the eyes of the teacher in front of her narrowed in anger.

"Kakashi-sensei. Yes, I caught Haruno-san cheating in class today," he bit out.

Her homeroom teacher's mismatched eyes caught hers in a friendly and reassuring gaze. "Sakura, just because you're nervous from moving to a new school, you shouldn't compromise your academic integrity," the silver-haired teacher said cheerfully. "I suppose you've already told her that the standard punishment for the first infraction is detention and the Headmaster calling her parents."

_'Wh…why that JERK! Threatening me with suspension from club activities when that wasn't even the punishment!'_

"Of course," Orochimaru ground out in frustration. "Detention tomorrow after school, Haruno-san."

"Yes, sensei," she replied tightly, snatching up her backpack to head to the door.

"Cheaters never pay, Sakura," Kakashi said lightly, patting her shoulder as his eyes smiled surreptitiously. "And wrongdoers _always _get their comeuppance." His eyes flickered to the other teacher and back to her; hers widened in shocked understanding.

_'H-he…he doesn't mean me…he means the snake-scum!'_

A small smile blossomed across her elfin features. "I…I guess so, Kakashi-sensei," she replied. "Sorry for causing you trouble."

He grinned. "No harm done. Go get some lunch before it's too late," he told her, dismissing her.

_'Thanks for saving me there, Kakashi-sensei,'_ she thought as she sped down the hall to the cafeteria. _'I guess you're not bad, even if you do come to school when you're chronically ill.'_

"Hey, you! What the hell, don't just cut because you're an Akatsuki!"

"I…s-sorry…"

"Sorry?" the boy, a senior surrounded by three guys and a girl, snapped as he glared down at her. "Sophomores. You brats don't seem to know anything about respect."

Her cheeks flushed dark vermilion as she took a step back at the scorn in his voice. "I-I said I was sorry…"

"Did you hear that, Kidomaru?" one of the two twin males laughed as he pushed pale, blue hair out of his eyes. "She said she was sorry. Not as sorry as she'll be, messing with Oto dorm seniors, huh?"

"We were looking for someone to play with," the other twin piped up with an equally chilling grin. "I guess she'll do."

Sakura swallowed hard, emerald green eyes flickering around nervously. But they were standing near the edge of the cafeteria, half-hidden by the line of entrees and a large drinks machine. She wouldn't be getting any help. Her pulse began to race, pounding in veins as adrenaline flooded her system. The faces of her tormentors were hard, enjoying her fear.

"P-please stop," she said, mentally cursing her shyness as she stumbled over the words. "I didn't mean to cut."

"Didn't mean, didn't mean, sounds like an excuse," the one who had accused her repeated with a mocking laugh. "Pretty sure wars have started over things like 'I didn't mean.'"

"Y'know what I say," the girl piped, her rough voice scraping over Sakura's tightly coiled nerves. "We should take our pretty little friend outside for some _fun_."

The group's laughter only made her heart pound faster.

"Come on then, little miss pink," one of the twins taunted, grabbing her by the arm, "Let's go out for some exerci-!"

"Excuse me," Kisame said with mocking joviality as he easily shoved the other senior out of his way, mid-sentence. "Were you trying to say something important to our housemate?"

A warm hand gently took her arm as her eyes connected with the dark-eyed, even gaze of Uchiha Itachi, he and the tall, shark-faced senior standing between her and her tormentors.

"Hoshigaki," the dark brunet male spat, his face contorting with anger. "You-,"

"Were you going to say something?" Kisame asked with a smirk as he flipped a thumb at the rest of the cafeteria, the eyes of many spectators on them. "Just wanted to let you know about our audience."

"You wouldn't have the guts for a fight here," Kidomaru snarled, his dark eyes flicking from one indistinct face to another.

"Wouldn't I?" the other senior replied, acting bored as he gave a little yawn. "Or would you rather take this to a kendo match?"

Kidomaru's face turned dark crimson as he spun on a heel. "Come on guys, it isn't worth the time we're wasting," he growled as they sauntered away.

"Whatever," Kisame spat, glaring at their retreating backs. "Cowards." Noticing the worried gleam in Itachi's eyes, he turned his attention back on his two housemates. "What is it?"

"Sakura's not responding; I think she might start to hyperventilate," Itachi said tersely, gently shaking the rose-haired girl.

"Sakura. _Sakura._"

She could vaguely tell he was calling her name above the pounding of her own heartbeat as her body went into overdrive from the repeated stress of the day. Her least favorite teacher had accused her of cheating, she'd been threatened with being cut from club activities, and then she'd been bullied in the school's cafeteria. A breathless feeling filled her lungs.

"Snap out of it candy-girl!" she could hear Kisame saying.

Then Itachi's quiet, almost urgent, "Come on, Sakura…"

Warm lips descended on her own, heat exploding inside her as her mind went blank. For seconds all she could feel was softness and tightly reined wanting, and then the world came back in a flash as air flooded her lungs, the sounds of gasps and catcalls loud in her ears.

_'Holy FREAK!'_

She shoved him away, fingers leaping to kiss-bruised lips as she panted with nervous exertion. "What the _hell,_ Itachi!" she yelled. "Who gave you permission to kiss me?!"

And then she was gone, running as if her life depended on it, out the door and away across the front lawn.

A heavy arm landed across Itachi's shoulders as a rather pissed Kisame tried to drag him into a headlock. "I know you're going to reason that you did that to stop Sakura from hyperventilating and passing out, but kissing her is a _direct _violation of the Rules," he said with playful harshness. "Best friend or not, you're going to get it, man!"

The sounds of Kisame's ranting filled the cafeteria as a solitary blonde pushed away from her table and quickly slipped out in the opposite direction of the rose-haired girl, bursting with the desire to let her genius best friend know about this new development.

=*~*~*=

_'Jerk...'_ Sakura thought sadly, scrubbing a hand across her tearing eyes as she curled up against the trunk of a maple, hidden out of sight of the cafeteria. "That was my first kiss…"

She could still feel his lips against hers, her heart speeding up at the thought of it. "Itachi…"

"Yes?"

She bit back a scream as she leaped to her feet. "You! You-," the word '_jerk!_' died on her lips as the seventeen-year-old thrust a store-bought bento into her hands.

"I'm sorry."

"Wait!" She went crimson as he turned back to glance at her over his shoulder. "I-If you're going to apologize," she stammered, certain her face was _glowing_ with her embarrassment, "Y-you ought to s-stay and keep me company."

The smile he gave her was enough to set her heart racing all over again.

"As you wish, Sakura."

"Wh-what's with the sudden change today? Everyone being so nice, I mean," she added quickly, not really wanting to discuss their…her mind shied away from the thought hastily. "Y-yesterday…"

Itachi sank into a cross-legged seat beside her at the foot of the maple tree, leaning back against the rough bark as his dark eyes slid to her. "Deidara told us last night. We…we didn't realize how our usual actions in school would affect you. It was our mistake." His fingertips brushed warm against her cheek, making it grow pink under his touch. His thumb slid down from her cheekbone to caress her bottom lip…and pluck away a grain of rice.

"You missed this one," he teased gently, licking it off his finger.

Heat spread across her face as her viridian eyes widened. _'W-was that an indirect kiss?'_ It seemed so silly to find her heart turning flips inside her at the thought, especially since he had just…and not too long ago. But there was a sweetness in his gestures now that was so unlike the confusing crash of emotions from earlier. And here, when it was just the two of them, she could almost imagine there was something more there between them.

"How…how did you know I hadn't had lunch yet?" she asked, hastily changing the subject before she could read too much into his actions.

Itachi shrugged, the movement awkward with his back to the tree. "You were standing by the lunch line when we arrived. Why were you so late in getting lunch?"

"Oh…" A dark look crossed her features. "The snake-scum accused me of cheating and gave me detention," she muttered, fingering the last sushi roll in her bento. "It doesn't matter," she added quickly. "I…I'd rather know where you got this bento! I don't think they sell it at the cafeteria?"

"There's a small shop that sells things like this on the other side of campus," Itachi told her as his dark eyes narrowed. "But tell me about detention."

"I'd rather not," she said flatly, avoiding his gaze. "I'm sure Sasori will let you know and…honestly, I'd rather…talk about other things…"

The dark-haired Uchiha junior sighed, catching the pained plea in her voice. _'When will you learn to trust me, Sakura?'_ he wondered, the thought tinged with sadness as he nodded and let her change the subject.

=*~*~*=

"That _bas_-,"

"Shut up, dobe," Sasuke snapped, smacking his roommate upside the head as he fixed his dark eyes on Ino. "You're interrupting." With his mouth set in a grim line, he nodded to the blonde girl who shrugged as if to say that she didn't really care whether Naruto interrupted or not. "What else?"

"There isn't much else to tell," Ino said. "Sakura freaked out and ran off and Kisame yelled at Itachi for kissing her." She rolled her eyes at the Uchiha's furious glare. "I wouldn't have gone out of my way to tell you this now, but Shika figured it would be best if you heard it from me instead of as a rumor in the halls later," she added, flipping her thumb at the lazy brunet who gave her a shrug back.

"Thanks, Ino," the youngest Uchiha said quietly, startling his companions. "I'm glad Sakura still doesn't seem to have developed feelings for my brother…but," his eyes flickered to Shikamaru who gave him a slight nod, "I think we need to start up the second part of our plan soon."

The girl nodded absentmindedly, leaning against her locker as she fiddled with the combination. The door clanked open to reveal a small bag of makeup along with her books and binders. "I guess I'm scheduled for a shopping trip this weekend," she said nonchalantly, lips curled into a tiny grin.

* * *

The plot thickens! A shopping trip appears on the horizon! And when exactly will Sakura get to wear her new pajamas?! Honestly, I need to write the next chapter to find out XD

The muse appreciates cookies and reviews, and if you can take the time to fave, please leave me a line ^^

Ah yes, I've also got a poll on my profile now about Belonging if you'd also be so kind as to go check that out? Thanks!


	8. Thoughts of the Heartfelt

A/N: Holy crud, long chapter! Ten pages almost, and a lot more words than usual too! (5K+!!) Which makes this the longest chapter of Belonging yet! So, please enjoy this very special Veterans Day update! I finished this chapter on Saturday, having spent some of Friday and most of Saturday with ideas whirling around in my head like a tempestuous storm, and then it just sat there on my laptop driving me nuts...so I was happy we (in the US of A at least) have a holiday that I can use to justify uploading this early. Just as a note, this week's Belonging update WILL actually go up (think about that, TWO updates in a week?? Pretty sure that's a record for this fic ^^) but probably on Saturday instead of Friday because, let's face it, uploading another chapter two days after this one would be an overload ^^ right?

Anyway, with that being said, please enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: The authoress does not own Naruto or its characters, though she'd be more than welcome to accept them as a gift from Kishimoto at any point in time...

* * *

**Chapter 8: Thoughts of the Heartfelt**

Sakura sighed, pressing her forehead against the cool metal of her locker door. Today had been a roller coaster of insanity that included being accused of cheating, scheduling a detention, her first kiss…with Uchiha Itachi no less, and a strange sort of lunch date with him after. It had been a long day.

The sharp report of shattering glass startled her, making her jump. "What the-?!"

Pearlescent lavender liquid oozed under the open locker door beside her.

"Crap! That was my favorite!" the girl behind the door cried, hurriedly falling to her knees to try to sop up the nail polish.

"I-Ino?"

"Huh?" The blonde glanced up, looking somewhat harried, bits of broken bottle and Lilac Lolita oozing over the piece of lined paper she was using to mop up the mess. "Oh…hey Sakura…sorry, I'm probably getting this all over your locker…"

"N-no, I'm fine…are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine, but my favorite nail polish isn't," Ino moaned unhappily. "I needed it for this weekend but…" she trailed off with a sigh.

Sakura knelt down next to her, helpfully picking out larger pieces of glass from the polish, her emerald eyes curious. "What's happening this weekend?"

The blonde flashed her a tiny smile. "Mom's throwing a gala so I'm going home Saturday and coming back Sunday, but this was the last of my Lilac Lolita nail polish and it really goes with the dress and now I can't wear it and of _course_ Shika'll blow me off if I ask him to go shopping with me because he's got that chess tournament to set up this Friday…" The cerulean-eyed girl grinned apologetically. "Sorry, I'm ranting aren't I?"

Sakura grinned back. "Maybe just a little. But…don't you have any girl friends to go shopping with you?"

Ino shook her head; blonde locks sliding over her shoulders as she replied in the negative. "My best friends are a lazy genius chess champion who hates all things troublesome, and a boy who should grow up to be a food critic if he didn't stop messing up his gastrointestinal system by eating too fast. It kinda doesn't leave much space for girl friends…" she flashed the other girl another lightning-fast grin. "I guess that's why I thought it'd be cool if we were friends yesterday…I mean, we're both around boys who pretty much take up our lives."

"So since we can understand best what the other is going through, we should…be friends?"

"Exactly!"

Jade eyes widened slightly as a strange tickle bubbled inside her, rising up to her throat and out in happy giggles. "I like it! I haven't had a female friend in…I can't even remember," Sakura admitted. "Do you want me to go shopping for nail polish with you? I didn't pack a lot of clothes so I was going to go looking for new things to wear anyway…"

"Really?" Ino asked, as delighted as if that particular outcome hadn't been just what she had been working towards. "That'd be great! I'll meet you here Friday afternoon, maybe half an hour after classes so we can both change out of our uniforms?"

"Sounds good…" Sakura trailed off as a quiet tread alerted her to a presence behind her. "Looks like one of my prison wardens are here," she whispered, startling a giggle from the other girl. "I'd better go."

"Sakura."

"Hi, Sasori, are we going home now?" she asked, gaining a nod in answer. "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow in homeroom, Ino," she said with a quick wave and a smile.

"Bye!" The blonde smirked to herself as she watched the rose-haired girl walk off. "I hope you'll still go shopping with me Friday, in _spite_ of the sudden influx of clothes to your closet from this morning." Humming in amusement, Sakura really was sweet and would probably be tons of fun getting to know, she walked off to find a trashcan for the sad remains of her favorite nail polish.

"Geez…the things I do for you, Shika-chan…"

=*~*~*=

Jiraiya sighed. Work was a troublesome thing, always bothering him with students and teachers and politics when all he had wanted was a quiet office to write in. But of course, he had a commitment. Hishin was his school; he had to watch over it.

Which brought him to the most troublesome of all his Headmaster duties. Calling parents. It should have amused him that it was Kakashi, one of his history teachers and admittedly not the most diligent of his staff when it came to things like this, telling him to make a phone call, but he'd taken one look at the student and any humor in the situation had vanished.

It was a call he hadn't wanted to make, to someone he hadn't spoken to in years.

Even when Sakura had enrolled into the Academy, it was the girl who had done all the work, emailing back and forth with him as she filled out applications and negotiated a scholarship.

He almost wanted to just fob the duty off on his vice Head of Academics, but he knew he couldn't. Orochimaru was a friend but…this was personal. Sort of. And with an expression like someone being led off to the guillotine, he punched in the numbers.

Ring.

Ring…ring…click.

"Hello?"

The word brought him back, the sound of her voice painfully familiar. The tone was more clipped and professional now…but he could remember when it was light and teasing, mockingly scornful, slurred with a touch of alcohol, tight with emotion and too serious. And those feelings he thought had been locked up forever, dead and gone, flooded him again in a rush.

"…Hello? Is this some kind of prank call because if it is, so help me I will-,"

He picked up his receiver to cut her off before she worked herself up into a full rant.

"Hello Tsunade. It's me, Jiraiya."

=*~*~*=

"Come on, Sakura, you can do this," she whispered to herself, textbook and notebook crushed to her chest as she paced the length of her bedroom. "Just…walk out…down the stairs…to the common room…not that hard…and, I mean, he _offered_ to help…"

But, of course, it wasn't that easy. She was independent by nature and, coupled with her cursed shyness around the male gender, was having a hard time convincing herself that a short walk down to the living room after dinner was an easy task.

Still, if she didn't finish her homework assignment, she just knew Orochimaru would find a way to turn it into another detention or something. And it was that thought that finally got her out the door and down the stairs at last.

"I can't believe you!" Deidara's voice floated down the hall as she neared the common room. "You…you…Sakura!"

Heads turned, faces all mirroring looks of surprise as she stopped by the doorway.

"Um…hi…"

"Hey there, candy-girl," Kisame greeted with a slow grin, "What're you down here for?"

"I just…need…Chemistry help…" she trailed off, her cheeks growing warm with the last words.

"Where would you like to study?" Sasori asked easily, rising to his feet as the others cast each other interested glances.

"A-anywhere's fine," Sakura told him, the courage she had worked up earlier draining away.

"The others are using the common room. My chemistry stuff is upstairs; we can work in my room."

"It's getting late, I'm going to sleep."

"Y'know I think I'll go get myself a snack…"

"Hey Zetsu, we have that Lit project we should really start working on."

"I'm taking a shower."

The room emptied with stunning alacrity.

"I…I guess everyone was done using this room?" Sakura asked with a slightly confused smile.

"So it seems," Sasori intoned with unusual grimness. "I'm going to go upstairs to get my stuff. Wait here."

"Okay. You know, you don't have to order me around," the rose-haired girl added, somewhat annoyed. "It's kinda rude."

The redhead paused by the common room door. "I'm…sorry, Sakura. Please wait here?"

Her answering smile took his breath away. "I'm not going anywhere."

Sasori felt his lips curve in response, and with a nod, he headed for his room.

"Sasori no danna…"

"It's just chemistry homework, Deidara," the redhead said flatly as he hunted up his notebook. "You know what the snake-scum's like. If she isn't getting full marks, he's going to find ways to make her life miserable."

"And that's it, yeah?" the blond asked fiddling with his Lit stuff as Zetsu watched them both wordlessly as he sat cross-legged on Deidara's bed.

Sasori walked out with a nod. "Yeah, that's it."

The green-haired boy's amber eyes narrowed at the retreating back. _'He's lying…'_

It was true. In spite of knowing that Deidara, and possibly a few other members of the Akatsuki dorm, might be harboring feelings for the rose-haired girl, he was fascinated by her as well. Her innocence, and the stubborn determination that had her facing Orochimaru and her fears as she managed a house full of guys, held an intriguing allure. And the thought held a certain amount of pride. She was quietly courageous, the dorm manager of the Akatsuki was. _Their_-.

He froze at the doorway, taking in something he hadn't realized before.

Across from him, seated at the couch with her back to the door, was Sakura, bent over her textbook. Her strawberry-milk hair parted across her neck, falling forward to reveal the name emblazoned on the back of the navy sweatshirt she wore: Uchiha Sasuke. Beneath it was the familiar fan emblem of the Uchiha family that showed up occasionally on some of Itachi's stuff.

A flash of possessive anger sparked through him and, as if feeling his gaze on her back, the girl straightened and turned.

"Sasori?"

"Hey," he said, quickly regaining control of his feelings. He was here to help Sakura, not let his emotions get in the way of thwarting Orochimaru's plans to make the girl's life a living hell. At least, that's what he was going to have to tell himself if he wanted to be a decent tutor. "So what were you having trouble on?"

=*~*~*=

Almost an hour later, Sasori had to admit that there was little he would have needed to do to help her out. Sakura was a quick study, easily solving the more difficult homework problems with nothing more than a little prompting from himself, and soon their conversation became less and less about the problems themselves, and more about the concepts behind them.

He couldn't remember ever having this much fun on a chemistry assignment.

"What are those on your pajamas?"

Emerald-green eyes fluttered to him, bemused by the question that had nothing to do with the subject they'd been studying. "What?"

"The white flower-like things with the pink swirl in the middle," he elaborated, feeling the beginnings of a blush begin to paint his cheeks. He hadn't meant to say anything about them, but the question had escaped him before he'd had a chance to call back his words, and he _was_ curious. "I've never seen pajamas with them before. In fact I've never seen them before either."

"Never?" Sakura asked, her voice tinting with surprise. "But…you see them in ramen all the time! They're naruto kamaboko!"

His blank gaze was enough to tell her that he had no idea what she was talking about. "I've never…had ramen."

Her gasp echoed loudly throughout the room, and he noticed with a small thrill of satisfaction that her cheeks were free of any shy blushes. This was all Sakura, no fear and no reservations.

"You've never had ramen?!"

"No."

"Oh, that's so strange!" she exclaimed with a small giggle. "My best friend Naruto loves it. In fact, these pajama pants are his, I think. Orange with naruto kamaboko on it so…yeah, I probably ended up with them after one of our numerous sleepovers. He and Sasuke used to visit me a lot when I went to the all-girls school."

There it was again, that hot irritation as she so casually referred to her two best friends that he couldn't suppress, no matter how pleased he was to find her so carelessly open with him at that moment.

"I see."

She made a small grimace at his monotone reply, then smiled suddenly, as if struck by a new idea, one that made her lips curve with delight. "I'm a pretty good cook, how do you feel about ramen for dinner tomorrow? I have detention after school but he can't keep me for long, can he?"

Sasori let a Cheshire cat's smile slowly make its way across his sharp features, violet eyes warm as they met her jade ones. "Ramen sounds…delicious."

And suddenly, like a jolt of electricity running through her system, she realized their proximity. They had been sitting side by side to solve her homework problems, but over time she had come to be sitting cross-legged on the couch, facing him, with him leaning against the sofa's high arm. But in her excitement, she had come forward onto her knees, her hand finding its way to his arm as he leaned to meet her halfway, their faces infinitely closer than before. She could feel his warm breath on her lips, and suddenly they were hot with the memory of Itachi's lips against them, the feel of his soft kiss constricting her throat.

Warmth, overpowering warmth, exploded inside her, heating her to the very ends of her fingers and toes, her heart pounding into overdrive. His hand, the one not attached to the arm under her fingertips, burned her as it rested on her hip.

"I-I…" It was too hot, and her mind was going fuzzy as a yawn burst from her lips. _'Oh crap…not…now…'_

"Sakura? Are you alright?"

"I-I'm fine, Saso…" she assured as another yawn interrupted her, "I…I need to…bed. I get sleepy when I…I overheat." She struggled to extricate herself from the sweatshirt that was quickly exerting its soporific effect on her, making unhappy little child-like whimpers as she tangled herself in the garment all the more for her quick attempts to divest herself.

"Here."

His hands slid up her sides under the sweater, strangely irritating him with the touch of the cotton shirt she wore underneath. Gently, he raised his hands, up and up, until the navy material was at her neck, covering her face, then over.

"Th-thanks," she yawned, her eyes still fluttering sleepily as her heart pounded in her ribcage, "but I th-think it's too…late…" Her eyes slid closed, her breathing evening out as her head tilted back, exposing the ivory column of her throat. She was asleep, her white shirt with its pattern of dolphins, bunched up from her attempts to undress herself so that his eyes were greeted with a pale expanse of toned abdomen. Her neck arched gracefully, drawing his eyes.

"Sakura…"

"Hey! What the hell are you doing to her, seriously?!"

His mind growled in anger as he turned to face his classmate. "None of your business, Hidan."

"Damn straight it's my business if you're not going to be able to keep your hands off of her!" the silver-haired senior hissed back, his dark eyes flashing angrily.

"She merely fell asleep."

"Like hell," Hidan bit out acidly. "What girl falls asleep around a guy with her shirt pushed up to her chest? Seriously!"

"I am not you," Sasori replied in a bland deadpan, pulling Sakura's shirt down as he got to his feet. "Goodnight." His quiet tread echoed eerily through the halls as he pushed past his silver-haired teammate and made his departure.

"Like hell you're not," the dark-eyed senior muttered under his breath as he circled around to the front of the couch where the rose-haired girl lay asleep. "Like hell…"

In the distance, the front door slammed.

Hidan raised an eyebrow. "Guess I pissed him off good…"

"Hn?"

His eyes flickered immediately to the girl in front of him, and he noticed that beneath her soft lashes were thin slivers of sea-green. She was coming awake.

"Sakura?" he spoke quietly, not wanting to disturb her. It was strange how she evoked such gentle, _tender_, feelings in him with the smallest of gestures, her girlish hands reaching out to him like she would have a father or older brother.

"Na…" a yawn interrupted her, "Naruto?"

Hot emotion, it was jealousy…feeling so unfamiliar in his chest, radiated out of him as he leaned over her, caging her smaller body against the plush of the couch. "Hidan," he corrected, his voice rough, grating in his own throat. "Hidan."

"Hidan…" she repeated sleepily, reaching for him. "So…tired…"

"I'm taking you to bed," he told her, a smirk brushing his lips as he realized just how _differently_ a bystander could interpret those words from their original intent. But it melted away as she nodded innocently and wrapped her arms around his neck as he picked her up, her soft skin smooth against his bare shoulders.

_'Jashin help me…'_ He didn't usually pray for self-control…but it was one of those moments when he felt he needed it. His love of going about shirtless was being both a gift and a curse in this situation.

"You're really light. Seriously, do you eat enough?" he asked, semi-jokingly as he cradled her in his arms, abandoning her textbook and homework on the common room table.

"I eat…fine…" the girl muttered into his chest, mindless of the fact that it was bare, or that her lips were brushing his collarbone in the most distracting way. "Nothing wrong with my weight…"

"Right," Hidan mumbled to himself as he hurried up the stairs, wanting to keep her in his arms longer…and finding it harder and harder to concentrate in his destination with her warm breath feathering across his bare skin, the fingers of one hand curled against his sternum as the other arm wrapped around his neck.

"H-hey, Sakura…your keys?"

She wiggled in his arms, making him realize with a dull jolt that he'd been carrying her bridal style the entire time…strange how it made his chest warm…and not just where she'd been touching him either, and fished out a set of keys, giggling as he knelt just low enough for her to reach her lock but not low enough that she could slide out of his grasp without falling on her butt.

And then the door was open and they were through, Hidan setting her down onto her bed, Sakura immediately snuggling into the covers with a sleepily appreciative moan.

_'Shit.'_

He couldn't ever remember a time when he'd exerted so much self-control, forcing himself to back away from her bed when all he really wanted was to wrap his arms around her and bask in her warmth. She kicked fitfully as she coiled the covers around her small body, and sighed again as, finally, she delved back down into unconsciousness.

Forcing himself out the door, he let it click shut behind him…and slid to the floor, running a hand through his silver locks.

"…the _hell_ am I getting myself into?" he muttered into the silence.

=*~*~*=

"You can do this, Sakura," she muttered, standing in the deserted hallway in front of Orochimaru's chemistry classroom after school. "Just sit through his one detention and get it over with…"

She'd had a decent day, one that included lunch with Ino, Shika, Ino's other male friend Chouji, and her own blond and dark-haired shadowers, hadn't been picked on much in Chemistry class, and ever her housemates had slowly begun to revert back to their usual selves around her in class. The only hurdle was this detention, and she was determined to get through it without mishap.

She didn't need a _third_ day of the snake-scum making her miserable.

Still, just in case, she'd managed to avoid her housemates after classes so they wouldn't know where to find her. If she was going to come out of detention emotionally scarred, she didn't want them to be witnesses. It'd be bad enough coming out of that room to be alone.

"Come on girl…let's get this over with." She pushed open the door.

=*~*~*=

"Remind me why we're out here again, yeah?" Deidara muttered irritably as he leaned into the fork of one of the maple trees outside the chemistry classroom. "We could be _in there_, but no, you'd rather we were out here, yeah."

"Being in there, as you put it, would alert the snake-scum," the dark-haired Uchiha sitting in the branches next to him said evenly, though his eyes never left the classroom windows. "He can't ever know…"

"How we feel about her," Kisame interjected, finishing Itachi's sentence. "If he found out…you know he'd make life living hell for her. He was _pissed_ when he found out he was getting replaced, and he resents her enough for that. If he knew we were looking out for her like this, he'd use it to get revenge on us for requesting a student manager like the other dorms."

The blond made a face, nodding his reluctant agreement. "So we stay out here, yeah. But if anything happens…"

"If anything happens, we get her out of there and damn the consequences," Itachi replied shortly, his face grim._'This is as much as we can do for you right now Sakura…'_

"Keep it down," Kakuzu hushed them from the next tree over. "We don't want him hearing us."

Seven Akatsuki males lapsed into silence, their forms hidden within the leafy branches of three separate trees as they watched over their female housemate.

=*~*~*=

An hour later, Sakura finished organizing each of her classmates' lab files, stifling a soft groan of pain as her spine realigned itself as she straightened. She hated constantly bending down, but the infuriating man had set all of the class's files in the bottom two drawers of the filing cabinet then _specifically_ admonished her not to sit on the floor…for sanitation purposes. Of course.

Still, considering his behavior for the last two days, she had been pleasantly surprised to find him doing nothing more than curtly ordering her around and ignoring her. It was preferable to the alternative.

"I'm done, sensei," she told him quietly, her fingers curling around one of her backpack's shoulder straps. "May I go now?"

"Yes. Leave."

She couldn't help the sigh of relief as it fell from her lips and she headed for the door.

"But," he snarled, making her flinch at the noise, frozen in fear by the door, "don't think that I won't be watching your every move. Just because your mother…" he trailed off with an angry growl sounding low in his throat. "I will have you in here again," he threatened, his amber eyes now no longer looking at her but rather _through_ her. "You can't just run away."

Confused and disoriented, Sakura backed away from the teacher who radiated fury as he sat at his desk.

"S-sensei…"

The door beside her opened with a swift inrush of air.

"Orochimaru-sensei?"

Forcing herself not to tremble, Sakura gazed up at the profile of her Lit teacher. "Iruka-sensei?"

"Oh hello, Sakura, what are you doing here?" he asked, brushing a knuckle over the scar across the bridge of his nose. "I didn't know you were still in the school building."

"I…I was serving…detention." She wasn't exactly sure what more to say as she lowered her eyes, not wanting to see the look of shame her other teacher must have been sending her. So she jerked with surprise when a warm hand ruffled her hair as an older brother would.

"So it's been rumored," Iruka told her, smiling as he patted her shoulder kindly. "Kakashi-sensei told me about it this morning. You shouldn't let moving to a new school get to you so much," he said, and winked.

_'I-Iruka-sensei too??'_ she marveled, feeling warmth flood her. "I…I'm sorry. Kakashi-sensei told me the same thing yesterday."

The chocolate-haired man nodded agreeably as he motioned her out the door and turned his attention from her to the still-simmering man across the room. "Ah, Orochimaru-sensei, I have the last staff meeting's minutes I'd like to discuss with you," he said evenly, "If you're done with Sakura."

"Yes," the ebony-haired man bit out, the grinding of his teeth nearly audible to the pair by the door. "You may go, Haruno-san."

"See you in class tomorrow, Sakura," Iruka said with another fleeting smile as his dark eyes glanced to her…then past her. "And I see your housemates are here to take you home," he added in a softer tone.

She whirled around, warmth rushing to her cheeks. He was right. Every other member of Akatsuki dorm was waiting around the hallway, having rushed out of the trees the moment she had finished up.

"Go on…"

Spurred by her Lit teacher's words, she hesitantly stepped towards them.

"You should have told us your detention was today," Itachi told her, his voice surprisingly gentle as he stepped to meet her halfway. "We…worried when we didn't find you by your locker."

"I'm sorry…" she murmured, struck by how…concerned they were for her. "I didn't…"

Heedless of Iruka-sensei standing several paces down the hall, or the other members of their dorm, he gently pulled her into a warm embrace that set her heart racing, her chest growing tight with emotion.

"Trust me…trust _us._"

=*~*~*=

_ "Sakura?"_

_ He could hear her as she stuffed her hands against her lips, stifling her childish whimpers as she hid inside the tree house. Obviously, she didn't want to be found, but he'd been asked to find her by her mother, and he had already known this was where she'd be._

_ "Sakura? Sakura, I can hear you…I'm coming up okay?"_

_ "N-no! D-don't 'Tachi-nii…"_

_ The sound of him coming up the tree house ladder stopped as the boy paused on a lower rung. "Why…why not?"_

_ "'Cause…'cause I'm…cr-crying…"_

_ But that wasn't a good enough excuse for him, and he clambered up the ladder in a flash, pulling her into his arms in seconds._

_ "Sakura…why're you…why're you crying?" the nine-year-old asked, his brows wrinkled together as he struggled to calm the sobbing girl._

_ "Mom…way…job…moving…" It was garbled and disjointed, but he got the gist of it. Her mom's job was making her transfer, and they'd be moving. It was like the bottom had dropped out of his world._

_ "When are you moving?" a strange voice asked, and it was weird to realize that it was his own. It sounded so…distant._

_ "In three days."_

_ It was like being filled with numbness. Nothingness enveloped him like a vice._

_ "To where?"_

_ "715 Maplewood Pass," she replied dully, finally reduced to mere hiccups as he gently rubbed her back. "I've…never even heard of it."_

_ And suddenly his heartbeat was back, thudding in his ears as if restarting the little organ that had stilled at the knowledge that the little rose-haired princess was going to be moving away. He brushed the salt from her cheeks with his hands as softly as he could, knowing a shirtsleeve was probably too rough. "Sakura…if I tell you…that everything will be fine…will you believe me?"_

_ The still-sniffling seven-year-old fixed him with luminescent viridian eyes, trust shining in their green depths, and nodded. "I-if 'Tachi-nii sa-say so…"_

_ He nodded solemnly, his own obsidian gaze meeting hers. "Trust me…trust me. Everything will be okay."_

_ And three days later, when she moved to a larger house that was only three streets away as opposed to being two neighborhoods down, she flung herself into his arms like there was nowhere else she'd rather be…and Itachi would have sworn later that he was floating on air with joy._

=*~*~*=

"715 Maplewood Pass…" she whispered, glass-green eyes glistening as she tried hard to remember something important, heedless of how the housemate with his arms around her stiffened, his body still rigid as she pulled away.

_'Is she…is she remembering when she moved?'_

She shook her head, lighting the hallway with her smile. "Come on guys," she said to the others who shared prideful smirks at her casual words, a sign that she was slowly, slowly, coming to trust them. "Let's go home."

=*~*~*=

It was late and he was just about ready to leave when the phone on his desk rang.

"Hello, Hishin Academy Headmaster."

A warm grin blossomed over the man's features as he settled back into his chair. "I'm good. How are you and your cousin?" A chuckle rumbled his chest as he tucked the phone between his ear and shoulder as he began to pack for the evening. "Yeah? That's great! So you're almost here?" Jiraiya nodded, even though the person on the other end of the phone couldn't see him. "I'll be at the train station in twenty minutes, see you there. Bye."

He grinned as he set down the receiver and collected his briefcase. "This is just what I need, something to keep my mind off…" he suppressed a grimace as his mind filled with blonde hair and alluring amber eyes. "Right."

* * *

Cookies to anyone who can guess who Jiraiya was talking on the phone with! Also, I'm quite close to my 150th review so good luck to whoever snags it!! I still can't believe how many reviews this fic has...I'm averaging a little less than 20 per chapter...o.o

Sorry this is uploaded a little PAST midnight ^^; I was roped into doing the dishes at THE most inopportune time...-_-;

Reminder, this week's scheduled Belonging update will probably go up some time Saturday afternoon, please be forewarned ^^ the muse thanks you for your reviews!


	9. Doorway Phenomenon

Wow, I never thought I'd get so many reviews for chapter 8!! This chapter was done a few days ago and I'm busy tonight so I thought I'd upload it anyway ^^ I know it's a little ahead of schedule, but I thought you guys deserved it early, thanks SO much for being such great readers!

Ah, and I forgot to reveal who was the mysterious caller from the previous chapter! It was...DUN DUN DUN...a new character who shows up this chapter!!

Congratulations to rebellious-and-ditzy-bookworm for snagging my 150th review! Her prize appears in next week Friday's update, chapter 10! The next prize goes to my 200th reviewer! (oh my...200 reviews...that's more than I thought possible...) And now, I present to you, Doorway Phenomenon…because a lot of things happened around doors this chapter…

* * *

**Chapter 9: Doorway Phenomenon**

"So are you ready for tomorrow?" Ino asked, grinning as she leaned against her locker door.

Sakura nodded, flashing her new friend a grin. "I could use the girl time. It's surprising how much I miss it after transferring from the all-girls school."

The blonde nodded understandingly. Since they had arranged to go shopping on Friday, the two had gotten to know each other better, and Ino knew all about Sakura's stint at the girls academy. "I haven't really had a chance to have lots of girl time since middle school either. I didn't go to middle school with Shika and Chouji."

"But I thought you knew them since you guys were really little?"

"Yeah but we went to different middle schools," Ino explained. "I went to a public school and Shika and Chouji went here. I transferred over in eighth grade."

"I see," Sakura interjected, cramming the last of her textbooks into her backpack. "So where are we heading tomorrow?"

"Bellflower Square; it's an outdoor-ish mall that's really popular and not too far away," the blonde told her, giving Sakura a meaningful nod as a long shadow crept over their feet.

The rose-haired girl turned, to be greeted by a heavy hand tangling in her strawberry-milk locks.

"Hey there, candy-girl. Ready to go home?"

"Get off me, Kisame!" she yelped, mock indignant as she thrust the older boy from her, finishing off her actions with a childishly disgruntled face. "You're heavy!"

"I'm buff, not heavy," he argued back, grinning his customary shark-toothed grin.

Standing a bit off to one side, Ino raised an eyebrow. This was a side of the brash senior she'd never been privy to, and it was…different. Different and interesting. Her lips quirked into a small grin. It was going to be more than fun getting information out of Sakura on Friday.

"Come on, candy-girl."

"Wait!" Sakura stopped him, taking a small breath to calm her nerves before turning to her newest friend with a somewhat shy smile. "Hey, Ino…I'd like you to meet one of my housemates, this is Hoshigaki Kisame."

To say that Ino was surprised might have been an understatement. An eighteen-wheeler could have barreled through the hallway, driven by her two childhood friends, neither of whom had their licenses yet, and she would have been less astonished. After all, one didn't just get introduced to a member of the Akatsuki dorm like it was nothing. They kept to themselves and didn't deal with other people. It was their _thing_!

But there was Sakura, uncertain but grinning and bearing it anyway, forcing people to open up.

"Hi…I'm Yamanaka Ino, nice to meet you Hoshigaki-san."

"Kisame," the senior said, somewhat brusquely. "None of us in Akatsuki go by our last names."

"Oh…then um…nice to meet you, Kisame-san," she said lamely, feeling disoriented.

"Okay well, I'll see you tomorrow then, Ino," Sakura interjected quickly, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "Let's go, Kisame."

Ino watched their retreating backs with a bemused expression on her elfin features. "Hmm…well isn't this a new development. Friday's going to be better than I thought."

"What was all that about?" Kisame asked as soon as he and the rose-haired girl were out of earshot of the blonde.

Viridian eyes glanced to him and away, dancing with light mirth. "Ino's my friend," she told him, pleased that her heartbeat was maintaining a decently normal pace. "I…would like my…my friends to all get to know one another."

"So we're friends?" the dark-eyed senior asked, the words drawing a smirk to his lips.

Crimson painted her cheeks as the girl looked away, pulling a mock frown across her features. "Maybe."

A deep chuckle made its way out of his chest. "Good," he told her, dodging her swipe as he went in for another hair-ruffle. "I was beginning to think you didn't like us."

"I don't cook breakfast for people I dislike!" Sakura argued, now grinning as she faced him, her hands on her hips. "I even made you guys my super special blueberry pancakes!"

"Okay, okay," Kisame replied, placating her, this time with a hand on her shoulder. "I get it. We're friends."

Sakura grinned. "Now that that's settled I-," a gasp interrupted her train of thought as she froze, mid-step.

"What's up?"

"I left my library book in my locker," she replied with a wry smile. "I'm going to go back and grab it okay?"

"Want me to go with you?" the shark-faced senior asked with a crooked grin.

"I'll be fine on my own."

"I'll take your bag then, no point in dragging it all the way back to school, we're almost home anyway," he told her, hefting her bag with his own.

"Don't go digging through my stuff," she warned with a teasing grin, waving her thanks as she ran off back towards the school.

"Yeah, yeah, I won't," the eighteen-year-old said with a roll of his eyes. "Kids."

"I heard that!"

Sakura made a face, wrinkling her nose as she hurried back down the cobblestone path she and Kisame had been taking back to their dormitory. Running past the gymnasium, she took a left to cut across the front of the school's theatre, then a sharp right around the main building.

"OW!"

Sakura flailed a moment as she collided with a hard body, before tripping backwards and sitting down hard into the damp grass. A dark messenger bag hit the cobblestone path by her feet with a dull thump.

"What the…" a male voice interjected, the words a quiet exclamation of surprise.

She winced, making a face at the feeling of coldness soaking her skirt, the garment sticking wetly to the backs of her thighs. "Sorry…" she groaned, glancing up.

An older teen gazed down at her, sunlight glinting off the piercings that lined either side of the bridge of his nose, carrot-orange messy hair falling into his eyes. His face was carefully blank as he regarded her in utter silence, his pale lavender orbs drawing in every detail of her, including the grass stains that now marred her dress, and the dirt that stuck to her palms from when she'd reached out to break her fall.

"I'm alright," he told her, extending a hand. "You?"

Sakura cursed her warming cheeks as she wiped her muddy hand on her skirt and tentatively reached out to take the one he held out to her. "I-I'm fine," she said, stifling a hiccup of surprise as he effortlessly pulled her to her feet. "I'll be going home to change out of this outfit really soon anyway." She twisted around a bit and tried not to frown at the large, green and brown stain that spread across her backside.

"I apologize about it, nevertheless," he replied, startling a flinch out of her as he unzipped his dark sweatshirt. "Are you always this skittish?"

"I am not skittish," Sakura bit out, watching him warily as he tugged off his outer garment.

"Right."

He easily tossed the open sweatshirt around her waist, eliciting a squeak from the rose-haired girl.

"Wh-what the heck!" she yelped, instinctively jerking back in a futile attempt to get out of his reach. "S-stop!" Her cheeks flamed crimson as he ignored her and knotted the arms of his sweatshirt around her waist so that the garment's torso covered the grass-stained mess across her rear.

"There," he said calmly, re-shouldering his messenger bag. "Now no one will see it." He stepped past her towards the administration building.

"W-wait! I can't…how will I get this back to you?" she asked, bewilderedly motioning to his sweatshirt around her waist.

He shrugged, the ghost of a grin flitting across his features. "You're a student here at Hishin Academy right? I'll see you around."

She stared, flabbergasted, as he disappeared around the corner. "But…" Her cheeks went hot as she shook her head, hands unconsciously going to his sweatshirt. "Thanks…" Still blushing, she made a quick about-face and scampered off to retrieve her library book, wondering who in the world the orange-haired boy was.

Hidden around the corner of the gymnasium, the young man flipped open his buzzing cell phone. "Hello. Yeah I'm heading to the administration building…no, I didn't run into any trouble. Yes, we can talk about the entrance application later Jiraiya-san…"

=*~*~*=

"What is going on?"

Kakuzu figured it was a decent question to ask; usually he didn't find his housemates occupying a knot of space right outside the kitchen door, exchanging significant glances.

Kisame, the one nearest him, shrugged a shoulder contemplatively. "Sakura's cooking dinner."

The jade-eyed boy made a small grunt of surprise, crossing his tanned arms over his chest as he leaned against the portion of wall to Kisame's right. "She's…never done that before. What's the occasion?"

The darker-haired senior's eyes flickered to Deidara sitting cross-legged on the other side of the hallway and muttered, a touch irritably, "She found out that Sasori's never had ramen, so that's what we're all getting for dinner tonight."

Kakuzu didn't miss the flinch in the blond male's cerulean eyes at the quiet comment.

"I see," was the scarred male's only comment as he, too, joined the growing group of guys lounging outside the kitchen.

Inside the dormitory's spacious kitchen, Sakura tasted her ramen broth, completely oblivious to the number of boys collecting in the hallway. "Hmm…so I have shrimp, boiled eggs, um…pork slices…" she glanced around the messy kitchen, "nori, and…liver…right?" Wiping the bead of sweat that rolled down to her chin with a sleeve, she grinned and fingered the object lying on her cutting board. "And of course, naruto kamaboko."

Turning away from the heat of the stove, she cracked open the kitchen's only window for a breath of fresh air and went to fetch bowls for her ramen. "I should call the guys to dinner soon…" Setting down the stack of bowls on the counter, she headed for the door.

"Guys?"

"Ow!"

Sakura yelped in surprise, jumping back and almost slamming the door shut as she gulped back another shriek. "What the heck! Zetsu?!"

"That _hurt!_" the green-haired boy groaned, clutching the back of his head where the door had connected seconds ago.

"I-I'm so sorry!" Sakura yelped, poking her head out the kitchen door, only to gasp and stifle the sudden urge to retreat. Every male member of the dorm was seated or standing outside the kitchen with expressions ranging from contemplative to expectant on their faces. "G-guys?"

"This _is_ the first time you've made dinner for us, candy-girl," Kisame explained, breaking the nervous tension. "Can't blame us for being curious. After all, we're used to just looking after our own meals unless there's a special occasion to cook for or we decide to order in."

"I…I guess so," Sakura replied dubiously, her jade eyes flickering from one face to another. "Well then…dinner will be ready really soon…" and with that she beat a hasty retreat back into the kitchen.

"Okay Sakura…mind back on the food…"

Absentmindedly, she began portioning out the noodles, setting the bowls on two separate trays as she split up the various additions between them, finishing the dishes off with steaming ladles of ramen broth. A soft click of the kitchen door, coupled with the sound of her name, made her glance over her shoulder in surprise.

"Sasori?"

"Sakura…this is…"

She flushed shyly, a small grin ghosting over her lips. "I made ramen for dinner today. You've never had it and, well, I've had a lot of practice making it because of Naruto so…" she trailed off, nervously worrying her bottom lip between her teeth.

The serene smile he gave her made her cheeks glow hotter than before. "Thanks, Sakura. I really appreciate it."

"W-well, um…th-the…uh…dinner will b-be done soon so…" she stammered, finding herself blushing more than ever out of sheer horror at how quickly she'd been reduced to a stuttering, speech-impedimented mess.

"I'll seat myself then," Sasori told her with another sly curve of his lips, and slipped out of the kitchen, leaving a crimson-faced sixteen-year-old feeling utterly embarrassed by two very full trays of ramen.

_'I…am such an idiot…'_ she thought with a groan, breaking herself out of her stunned stupor. Shaking her head, she checked to make sure she'd gotten each bowl just right, then grabbed on tray and forced herself to walk into the dining room.

It was empty.

_'Thank Kami-sama…'_ She had no idea who it was that had kept the guys outside the dining room, but she didn't think she could face them all with her face flaming like a cherry. With a small sigh of relief, she hurriedly put each bowl at the correct person's seat, and then disappeared into the kitchen to repeat the process with the second tray. After all, having spent a week with her housemates, she was pretty well aware of their strange eating habits. They were _picky._

"Okay guys! Dinner's ready!" she called, feeling proud of her handiwork.

The dining room door burst open…and an arm looped around her waist as a much larger body cannoned into her own.

"Kisame!" she yelped, unable to stifle her giggles. "Put me down! Its just ramen!"

"You damn well made us dinner," silver-haired Hidan countered seriously as he helped her out of Kisame's grip.

"Come on guys, its just dinner," she mumbled shyly, taking her seat. "Just ramen."

_'This isn't _just_ ramen, Sakura,' _Kakuzu thought as he took his place and glanced down into his bowl with its small pile of fried liver slices on top._ 'This is…'_

She had somehow, in the course of a week, learned what they each liked eating, and had made a point to serve it with their ramen. She had pork slices for Hidan, whose favorite food was pork spare ribs, and Zetsu, who was an all-around meat lover. Kisame's ramen was garnished with shrimp, something Kakuzu knew was a treat the senior rarely had a chance to indulge in. Deidara's bowl had his favorite boiled eggs on top, while Itachi, who wasn't a huge fan of red meat, got a traditional-type seaweed garnish. He wasn't exactly sure why Sasori's bowl was piled high with naruto kamaboko, but knew there must have been some special reason behind that as well.

The girl had outdone herself…and now sat there, sandwiched between Zetsu and Kisame, making idle conversation like it was nothing.

It was almost infuriating is what it _was._

How could she not see it? She was worming her way into their lives just as they had been trying hard to be accepted into hers, and yet she seemed to…unconcerned at this victory. The appreciation running around the table was palpable to him, as real as the savory taste of the broth on his tongue.

It was in moments like this that he thought that maybe there was something more precious than money and what it could buy. _Sakura_ was like that…

"A ryo for your thoughts?" a curious voice cut through his internal monologue; he raised his eyes from his bowl to meet the viridian ones of the girl seated across the table.

"I'm sorry, Sakura," he apologized with a crooked smile. "My thoughts tonight cost about a hundred and sixteen."

"You're kidding!" she yelped, her girlish laughter dying away when no one else joined in. "You…you're serious?"

Kakuzu nodded with the barest hint of a smile. "Utterly." _'My thoughts about you can't be cheaply priced, nor easily bought.'_

=*~*~*=

"You're doing the dishes too?"

"It's no big deal, I'm just dumping them all into the dishwasher," Sakura reassured a surprised Zetsu as she collected up the empty bowls. "I honestly don't have any homework tonight, for once, so I'm just glad not to be cooped up in my room."

"If you're sure," the green-haired junior said with a shrug as he slipped out.

"Of course I'm sure," the girl laughed to herself as she gave the bowls a quick rinse. "Silly Zetsu, though it was sweet of him to ask about the dishes…"

The soft snick of the kitchen door opening again made her smile as she washed out the noodle pot. "Zetsu…I'll be fine doing the dishes on my own, really."

But then a pair of arms wound around her waist and pulled her tight against a warm chest, and blond hair brushed her quickly darkening cheeks, and she knew it _wasn't_ Zetsu at all.

"D-Deidara?"

"Dinner was…delicious, yeah," he murmured into her hair, the thumb of one hand slowly drawing tiny circles along the curve of her hip. "You're really good at cooking ramen."

"O-oh well…I had l-lots of practice…" she stammered, tamping down on the urge to squirm in his grip. His actions were flooding her with nervousness, making her tremble minutely in his arms. But what worried her most was his voice. Just the tone of it said that he was upset…and she had no idea why. "Deidara…is…is something wrong?"

"No, no, nothing's wrong," he told her cheerfully, quickly releasing her as he took a step back and turned away. "I just…wanted to tell you how good dinner was. Anyway, I have homework to do so I'm going to go…" he glanced back at the hand clamped firmly around his wrist, then over his shoulder at the resolute-faced girl who fixed him with an adamant gaze. "Sakura…"

"Don't lie to me," she murmured, her voice soft in spite of the death-grip she had on him. "If…if something's bothering you…you should say so…"

"Am I nice, do you think?"

Sakura blinked. Of all the possible responses he could have given, this had been the least expected. "Wha-uh…yes? I think in general you are…"

Deidara's laugh was so tinted with bitterness that she flinched in response. "Innocent Sakura-chan…" his fingers feathered across her cheek, "Do you always think the best of everyone?" And then he was out of her grasp and gone, leaving Sakura feeling…strangely bereft and much less willing to do dishes than before.

=*~*~*=

_'I'm not being weird…I just…really want to know what was bugging Deidara, that's all,'_ Sakura thought to herself. _'And I'm _not_ trying to justify camping outside the bathroom while he's showering…there's nothing TO justify…"_

She let her head drop to her drawn-up knees. _'It's no wonder he's always the last one to wake up in the morning…who takes a shower at almost one in the morning? Everyone else is already asleep!'_ She stifled a yawn, trying to find a more comfortable position as she sat by the bathroom door, lazily drawing star patterns on the bottom hem of her shuriken-studded pants. She was pretty sure they were Naruto's, he'd gone through a pretty obsessive ninja phase when they were twelve, but couldn't recall how they'd ended up in her possession.

"H-he probably out-grew them and gave them to me," she muttered to herself, yawning again. Of the three of them, she was the only one who ever really owned and wore pajamas nowadays, and often found that old shirts and pj pants that her friends were no longer fond of typically defaulted to her. "Pretty sure no one has a pajama co-coll-collection like me…" She snuggled closer to the wall, trying to conserve body head – the corridor was getting colder and colder and making her distinctly uncomfortable, and gave her arm a pinch so she wouldn't fall asleep.

_'Gotta…stay up…'_ Her eyes fluttered shut…

"What the-?" A soft, slightly damp, hand touched her shoulder. "Sakura?"

Hovering in balance between sleep and wakefulness, she made a small, keening noise in the back of her throat.

"Sakura…what are you doing here, yeah?"

"Dei-Deidara…" her eyes focused on the junior standing above her. "Wh-why are you…" her eyes widened as her brain jolted awake. "Why are you _naked?!_"

"I'm wearing a towel, yeah!" Deidara yelped, shushing her as a cute blush skated over his cheeks. "And I didn't think anyone else would be up. Why are you awake this late on a school night anyway?"

"I-I wanted to…to talk to you?" It came out sounding like a question as opposed to a statement, but she was confused and bewildered and tired, and none of that added up to good repartee at one in the morning. She struggled to her feet, feeling unusually skittish around Deidara in his…half-undressed state. "A-about earlier…"

"Forget about it, yeah," he said with a smirk. "It was nothing." He strode off, keeping a hand on the towel around his waist, to his room.

"It's not nothing!" Sakura hissed softly, catching the blond by an arm. "Why are you…" her voice dwindled, "why were you…so upset?"

She gasped as smoldering blue eyes met her own, her back thumping gently against the closed door of his room as she took an instinctive step back. She was suddenly realizing just how close he was, and for a second she had a flashback of the Hidan incident on her first morning at Akatsuki dorm. Only now, Deidara was the one just out of the shower and towel clad, and she was the one in pajamas.

_'I'm still the one getting backed up against something though!'_

"You want to know why I was annoyed, yeah?" he asked, voice going silky with coiled anger. "Little miss innocent."

He was too close, his still-damp hair dripping cold water onto her cheeks so that they rolled down her face like tears. "You have no idea, yeah? No idea what you do to us…to me." His eyes flickered downward, and with a thrill of mingled fear and excitement she realized he was focusing on her lips.

"Wh-what do you m-mean?" she whispered, her pulse beginning to race as he stepped closer, forearms now pressed against the door to either side of her head, caging her in.

"You. Have us all wrapped around your little finger, yeah. Kakuzu's told you stuff for free, Sasori and Itachi aren't so…stoic around you, Kisame set up his _Rules_, get it, yeah?"

"B-but how does that…wh-what does that have to do with you being…nice?" she asked as her breath caught in her throat as a warm puff of air brushed her lips at his low laugh.

He shook his head, droplets of cold water from his hair slowly soaking into her shirt. "They…they're my friends, yeah, even the Uchiha," he explained with a depreciating chuckle. "But _I hate them_ when I…when you…" She thought she could hear knuckles cracking as his fists pressed into the wood of his room door. Warm breath feathered over her trembling lips as her eyes fluttered closed and her pulse raced under her skin.

"D-Deidara…please…" She wasn't sure what she wanted to say after that, or if the hand that she placed on his bare shoulder was to draw him closer or push him away, but she never found out because suddenly she was released and his door was shut between them.

"Deidara?"

In darkness on the other side of the door, the blond pressed his back to the cold wood as if willing his body to somehow phase through it to the girl he wanted to be with.

"Dei…" She sighed, pressing her forehead to the wood a second, as if its coolness would somehow undo the hot jumble of thoughts tumbling around in her brain, then reluctantly pushed away to disappear upstairs to her room.

"Stupid Sakura," she berated herself under her breath as she stripped out of the damp shirt and dug through the clothes at the bottom of her closet for something else to wear. "Stupid clothing, I need to do laundry someday soon…" Shoving things aside, she finally found the one untouched shirt she had left…the one she had received almost a week ago along with her school uniforms.

"Better than nothing," she muttered sleepily as she pulled it on, ignoring the strange thrill that shot through her. Crawling into bed, she thrust all thought of Deidara from her mind and instead concentrated on the shirt. "Sure is funny," she giggled, fingers walking across the red lettering on the front. "I feel like Akatsuki property…"

=*~*~*=

"Sa-ku-ra! Oi! Where the heck are you, candy-girl?" Kisame bellowed, his arms crossed over his chest as he yelled up the stairwell. "Get down here!"

"Stop shouting, Kisame," Kakuzu said irritably, appearing above on the second floor. "She's not up here."

"What do you mean, she's not up there?" the gill-tattooed senior asked, finally lowering his voice to a volume more appropriate for the indoors. "You walked her home an hour ago, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but she's gone now. I just checked her room and she's not there, or in any other part of the upstairs."

"Geez," Kisame muttered, digging through the pocket of his jeans. "It's a Friday afternoon, the first bit of real free time all of us have, and she decides to disappear? What a pain…"

The brunet on the second floor raised an eyebrow. "Kisame…you sound like her mother…"

"Shut up, Kakuzu, I never asked for your opinion."

The click of someone picking up made them both turn their attention to the cell phone held against Kisame's ear.

"Hello? Kisame?"

"Oi, candy-girl, where the heck are you? We've been looking for like, half an hour!"

"…Kisame…you're starting to sound like my mother…"

The dark-haired senior flipped his snickering housemate the bird as he tried not to be too insulted. "Whatever, just tell me where you are. We're planning on going out to a movie or something and we don't want to ditch you."

"Oh…sorry!" Sakura apologized, the genuine emotion clear in her voice. "I didn't realize there was something planned today! Ino and I are out shopping…"

Kisame raised an eyebrow, his features twisting into a rather intense expression of curiosity. "Shopping? Where?"

"Where are we, Ino? …Bellflower Square? Yeah, we're at Bellflower Square, according to Ino, here. I'm sorry I can't go with you guys…"

"That's fine," Kisame replied as a slow, mischievous grin began spreading over his shark-like features. "I think we can manage fine on our own…"

* * *

Things are getting more and more involved now, I think XD and just WHAT does Kisame have planned? Stay tuned! Oh and please check out my profile for a poll ^^ I'm wondering if Belonging should have a sequel.

The muse thanks you for your reviews!


	10. Chaos Theory

Wow...I can't believe it. 200+ plus reviews...I'm in awe, thank you guys so much for loving this story and being so wonderful as to review and tell me so XD I know this chapter's a little shorter than previous ones, but hopefully it's to your guys' liking! Chapter entitled "Chaos Theory" not because it follows the...theory of...chaos theory...(i just used the word theory 3 times...^^; er...) which says that an event happened due to a series of very random happenstances, but just because the events of the chapter were chaotic XD (sorry, I feel kinda bad titling the chapter after a theory when it doesn't really come into play in the chapter at all!)

Congratulations to waterflame4991 who got my 200th review! Your prize is in chapter 11, and to rebellious-and-ditzy-bookworm, I hope you enjoyed your gift this chapter!

Disclaimer: Anything that looks even a little bit recognizable in the real world isn't mine, which, unfortunately, includes Naruto. Sigh. Well, on to the chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 10: Chaos Theory**

"Guys, we're going to Bellflower Square!" Kisame announced as soon as he entered the common room. Five pairs of eyes stared him down with various looks of quizzical doubt reflected in their multicolor depths.

"What…do you mean?" Zetsu asked, voicing the question everyone had been thinking.

The shark-faced senior grinned mischievously as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I mean; we're going to go in for some espionage. Come on, we'll take my car."

=*~*~*=

"What was that all about?" Ino asked as soon as Sakura had hung up.

The rose-haired girl blushed and shrugged. "Not sure…" she admitted with a small smile. "Th-they wanted to go watch a movie but I…I was…"

The blonde raised an amused eyebrow. "You can go if you'd like. They're your housemates, after all."

Sakura laughed, not at all diffident around her new female friend. "I'd rather go shopping."

"So. The Akatsuki wanted to take _you_ out to the movies."

Viridian eyes flickered shyly to the ground. "Th-that's what they're like around me," she said, her cheeks flushing traitorously as she spoke. "They're…pretty nice."

"Tell me what else they do for you," Ino teased, leading the way through the square to the elevator that would take them to the food court. "We'll grab some ice cream and you can tell me all about it; they sound like fun!"

Sakura found she was laughing in spite of herself. "I guess you could say that. They aren't boring, that's for sure."

Ino's cerulean eyes sparkled with pent up curiosity and mischief as they picked out their ice cream choice and found a table. "That sounds like a phrase that has a story behind it. Wanna tell?"

With a little grin, Sakura began to recount everything from the moment she had first become a part of Akatsuki dorm.

"Wow…" Ino breathed when Sakura was done, "You have to be kidding me."

The viridian-eyed girl's cheeks matched the shade of her hair. "Um…"

"It's not a bad thing!" Ino hastened to assure her, cerulean eyes sparking. "My goodness, you managed to crack the Akatsuki! They _like_ you!"

"We-well we're h-housemates," Sakura stuttered, feeling herself go crimson. "I-I don't…"

"Right, you weren't here in middle school," the blonde interrupted. "You wouldn't know…"

The rose-haired girl gave her a quizzical look.

"Back in middle school, Itachi and Sasori were both in different dorms; Itachi in Konoha and Sasori in Suna. They personally requested transfers into Akatsuki when they became high school freshmen, and the Headmaster agreed to it because they didn't get along with their respective dormitories at all. Itachi was a loner who only cared about his little brother, and Sasori pretty much stayed holed up in his room all the time. The other Akatsuki members pretty much stayed away from the rest of the school. They don't 'like' people."

"I-Ino they're not like that…"

The other girl shrugged. "It's possible. Apparently Zetsu was part of the garden club his first semester here…but he quit right before winter vacation. Deidara used to get made fun of in eighth grade because he looked like a girl…well," Ino corrected with a wry smile, "mostly because he looked like my twin sister and it's really hard to distinguish genders when you're a gangly blond kid with long hair when you're thirteen. And everyone finds Kisame kinda scary…he has those tattoos and he _has_ gotten in fights before."

"But they're not like that!"

"Hey, hey, calm down," Ino said, holding her hands up in a placating gesture. "I'm only repeating what other people have said. I can't say I've had much experience with the Akatsuki, and well, they've been stuck with Orochimaru as their dorm manager for the last year and a half, so I can't exactly blame them for being antisocial. Anyone would be if they were stuck with that man."

Sakura nibbled the end of her ice cream spoon thoughtfully, licking away the last remnants of her tropical sorbet with a small frown marring her forehead. "Why was he their dorm manager?" she asked at last. "They never explained."

Ino swirled around her pudding-flavored ice cream as she thought about it. "Well…dorm managers are typically students of good standing who live in the dorm and make sure everyone gets along. They have to volunteer for the job, and it comes along with a pretty substantial scholarship, I've heard. I guess there just wasn't anyone willing to be Akatsuki's dorm manager until you came along…and Orochimaru-sensei volunteered for the job when no one stepped forward."

"Oh…"

"But hey, you're here now and they obviously like that," the other girl added, sky-blue eyes bright. "Don't dwell on it too much. We've got shopping to do!" _'Well guys,'_ Ino thought as she led Sakura away, _'I don't know about you, but I'm beginning to think there's more to this than just male territorialism…and if they really _do_ like Sakura…she deserves to know about it.'_

And surrounded as Sakura was by guys, she, Yamanaka Ino, was going to be the one to break the news to the cute, innocent, rose-haired girl.

=*~*~*=

"Jiraiya-san…why did you want to meet here?"

"Isn't a mall where you kids like hanging out?" the snow-haired Headmaster of Hishin Academy asked with a smirk. "I was trying to put you guys at your ease."

"Jiraiya-san," the cerulean-haired girl sitting beside the first speaker said in her quiet voice, "you are failing."

"Konan-chan…that was harsh…Daddy feels hurts."

The soft-spoken seventeen-year-old rolled her eyes at his remark, though it didn't stop a tiny smile from tugging at the corner of her lips. "Jiraiya-san, you are not Pein and my father. You put yourself down as 'Uncle' in our guardian papers."

"Er…"

"Jiraiya-san, the reason why we were called here?" Pein asked, directing the conversation back to the original topic. The bustle of the place was beginning to irk him a little, and it reminded him clearly of why he had insisted on attending a small private school in the next town over with his cousin. The crowdedness was just too annoying here.

"I wanted to discuss your decisions with you both," Jiraiya replied, now back in Headmaster mode. "Konan, you want to stay at the Amegakure School for the Gifted, but you, Pein…" the older man gave the eighteen-year-old a quizzical glance. "What brought this on? I've asked you both repeatedly to transfer to Hishin Academy, but this is the first time you've agreed to consider it."

Both he and the navy-haired girl set curious gazes on the young, carrot-haired man.

"Attending Hishin will help me get into the university I want to go to," "Hishin is offering classes that I can't take at Amegakure," and "I want to start working as a student intern at a firm near Hishin," were all good, honest statements he could have made, but a flutter of pink appeared in a doorway and disappeared around a corner, and words came out before his mind had a chance to rein them in.

"Something at Hishin interests me…"

=*~*~*=

"Itachi, the Rules are not to be broken."

He had known this conversation would have to take place eventually, and now that the group had split up into individual pairs (and one trio of Zetsu, Hidan, and Kakuzu) it seemed like a pretty ideal time for Kisame to bring it up. He was only mildly surprised that it had taken his best friend this long to bring up the subject.

"I realize that, Kisame. You told us so in no uncertain terms when you first brought up them up, the first night Sakura spent with us. We all agreed to abide by them…though I'm a little surprised no one thought to ask you _why_ you were so adamant about them."

"Hey, Sakura was the new kid to Hishin and the only girl in our dorm. I thought we ought to put down some ground rules to how we ought to behave around her," Kisame retorted, crossing his arms over his chest with a sharkish grin. "Squirt needs someone to look out for her."

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "And the way to do that is by threatening Hidan with starvation and me with a weekend of suspension?"

"I did not threaten you with suspension!" Kisame protested as he took a quick glance into a nearby clothing boutique. "I'd have tried for you not being able to go to the movies with us. I know you; given the chance you'd somehow weasel your way into sitting next to her…and then where would she be?"

"Sitting next to me in a movie theatre," Itachi replied with sardonic amusement at Kisame's grunt of irritation.

"Shut up, you know what I meant."

The raven-haired Uchiha merely shrugged in response and led the way to one of the mall's department stores, his pace measured and unhurried.

"But, like I said," his gill-tattooed best friend began again, "you can't just break the Rules. And unexpected kisses is a definite violation!"

The words, "I was merely trying to stop her from hyperventilating," leapt to the forefront of his mind, but voicing them would mean he was effectively denying the pleasure he'd got from it, and the fact that he'd wanted it, and he couldn't bring himself to speak the lie. Even stolen, he'd relished the feeling her soft lips molding gently to his, and the thought of committing such perjury disgusted him. So he said nothing.

They continued on, circling twice through the women's apparel section of the department store, in silence, each contemplating his own thoughts, until the onyx-eyed junior finally broke the hush between them.

"Make up my penalty now," he said, stopping them in front of some changing stalls. He shrugged impassively at Kisame's inquisitive glance. "Kissing her was between me and Sakura. It isn't the business of the others."

The shark-featured senior raised an eyebrow in response. _'No one would believe me if I told them Uchiha Itachi, indifferent ice prince of Hishin Academy, didn't want the rest of his dorm knowing he'd kissed a girl.'_

But he could understand the sentiment. Kisame knew what Sakura meant to the eldest Uchiha.

"Fine, but you're getting two penalties because it was her first kiss. You won't be walking her home on Monday like planned, and if we run into Sakura and Ino today, you're going to hide."

"If you insist," Itachi replied, a touch irritated. He had been looking forward to more time spent alone with the rose-haired girl; ever since she had requested Sasori's help in chemistry he had been irked at how little time he had with her alone. But he'd apparently touched an overprotective nerve in his best friend and was getting something of a comeuppance. "But don't expect me to forgive you anytime soon for this," he added wryly.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever y-,"

"What about this shirt, Sakura? Come on, you should try it on!"

Both boys froze, exchanging a startled glance. They had been so intent on their conversation that neither had noticed the appearance of the girl they'd been looking for, until the mention of her name made them realize her proximity.

"_Crap!_'

In a single swift movement, Kisame grabbed ahold of the dressing room doorknob behind the shorter male, opened it with a wrench, and thrust the Uchiha inside, slamming the door shut just as the girls came into view.

"Kisame?"

He turned with a shark-like grin. "Hey ca-, I mean, Sakura. Hi, Ino. What are you guys up to?"

"Shopping," Sakura replied with a small quirk of her petal-hued lips. "And you? I thought you were watching a movie with the rest of the dorm today."

"Yup," Kisame replied with a smirk as he leaned back against the door of the changing stall, his weight effectively keeping it shut. "Dunno what's happening with that. I lost track of the others."

"That's unfortunate," Sakura said lightly, her fingers closing on the doorknob to the changing room beside them.

"Yeah," Ino added with a tiny, challenging smirk. "Especially since Bellflower Square doesn't have a movie theatre attached to it."

Iridescent jade eyes flickered from one friend to the other, suspicion leaking into their green depths. But just as her lips parted to voice those thoughts…

"Oi, we don't have all day, Sakura, go change!"

And she was unceremoniously shoved into the changing room.

"You guys are pretty obvious," Ino said offhandedly as soon as Sakura was sequestered away.

Kisame raised an eyebrow. "You think so?"

"Well it's obvious to me, anyway," the blonde replied with another tiny smirk. "More than obvious. Sakura's just…kind of oblivious, I guess."

"Nice way of referring to your new friend," Kisame remarked, still leaned against the other changing room door that was now slowly moving outward, as if their was someone on the other side that was putting a good deal of effort into getting out.

"Don't get me wrong," Ino said sharply, her cerulean eyes narrowing. "I like Sakura, and I want to be her friend. And as her friend, I'm trying to do my best to look out for her. You shouldn't-,"

"Hey, Ino?" Sakura's voice called from the changing stall, "Can you take a look at this for me?"

Huffing at the inopportune interruption, Ino gave the tattooed senior a look that clearly said the conversation was going to be continued later, and stuck her head into the other room. "Looks good! You should get it."

"It doesn't…its not too low cut or something?"

Kisame quirked an eyebrow, amused by the suddenly renewed efforts of his best friend to escape the other changing stall.

"No, no! Geez, Sakura, you look fine, stop fretting. Now change back so we can buy that."

"Okay, sheesh, I can figure that much out Ino!" but there was no heat in either of the girls' statements, and Kisame understood that they were merely teasing each other, much like he did with his fellow housemates.

"As I was saying," Ino continued as soon as the changing room door was closed once again, "You guys shouldn't play around with her like that. She's a lot less used to male company than most girls, and while she might not pick up on little nuances like I do, she's a smart girl. She's going to figure things out sometime, and if you keep toying around with her, she's going to get hurt."

"Hey, don't act like you're the only one looking out for her," Kisame replied with a snarky grin. "I'm doing my best to keep the guys in line, and I don't want to see her hurt any more than you do."

Penetrating azure eyes drilled him with a gimlet-like gaze. He was surprised to find himself actually discomfited by it, and finally shifted under the look, uncrossing and re-crossing his arms across his chest.

The girl smirked. "Alright, Kisame-san. I believe you. And because, as Sakura's friend, I think she's a good influence on you and would benefit from deepening her relationship with you guys, I'm going to help you out a little." The grin widened as Kisame glanced to her in surprise. "That's right, I'm going to help. Sakura told me today that she really likes to go stargazing."

"What?"

Ino shrugged nonchalantly as the door to Sakura's changing room began to open. "Have you ever been on the dormitory roofs, Kisame-san?"

And then she and Sakura were waving goodbye, disappearing to purchase the shirt, leaving a slightly confused senior in their wake.

The door at his back shifted slightly, a deadly calm voice issuing from the other side.

"Let. Me. Out of here, Kisame…"

=*~*~*=

"Mou, Kisame can be so weird sometimes," Sakura muttered to herself as she dumped her dirty laundry into one of the two washing machines in the dorm's first floor laundry room. It was Saturday, the day after her somewhat strange trip to the mall, and she was using the time spent on laundry to mull over the events of the day before. "Was he stalking us?"

_'Yeah right…'_ except that she couldn't exactly disprove the thought. If Bellflower Square hadn't had a theatre, there was no reason for him to be there…and she'd found out later that _none_ of the others had gone to see a movie either… It was more than a little confusing.

"Well…maybe they decided not to go so I wouldn't feel left out?" she thought out loud, trying to reconcile her housemates' actions with what she knew of guys. That thought was more comforting than the possibility that her entire dorm had gone to stalk her little shopping spree. "Naruto and Sasuke do that for me sometimes too…" _'Yeah, that's probably what it was,'_ Sakura assured herself. _'They're just really considerate.'_

"They're surprisingly nice," she giggled.

"Who's surprisingly nice?"

Stifling a startled yelp of embarrassment – she _was_ holding a collection of bras in her hands, which she quickly shoved into the open washing machine in front of her – she whirled around. "Hidan!"

"Well?"

"N-nothing! No one, I mean, argh, it's nothing important," she finally grit out, turning away from him to pour detergent into the water in her washing machine as the silver-haired male drifted towards her.

"Didn't sound like nothing, seriously."

"Well it really isn't any of your business," the girl said with a roll of her eyes, though she tempered the gesture with a quirky little smile. "Don't worry about it," she teased, noting the look on his face. "I'm going to be reading in the common room in a few minutes so…" a light blush skated across her cheeks; she wasn't used to extending friendship towards guys but she was obviously willing to try it when they were nice enough not to go to the movies without her, "join me?"

"Hell yes," he returned with a grin as he haphazardly dumped shirts and pants into the other washer.

With a nod, the girl disappeared out, the cute blush still in place.

"Damn, I'm acting weird around her," he muttered as he poured in detergent and turned on his washing machine. "Seriously…" He laid his forehead against the whirring appliance, it and the machine next to it vibrating in time with each other.

"Hidan?"

The senior straightened quickly, jerking himself around and to the door as Zetsu let himself into the laundry room. "Yeah?"

"Hey, my favorite shirt got ketchup down the front, mind if I chuck it in with your stuff?"

Hidan shrugged. "Do whatever the hell you want," he replied, flicking a thumb over his shoulder without even bothering to look back. "Just put it in that one."

Zetsu nodded as the senior stepped around him and out, opening one washing machine to throw in his black-and-green t-shirt before leaving without a backward glance.

The identical washing machines whirred in the silence of the empty room.

=*~*~*=

"Weird, is this one of mine?" Sakura wondered, sorting through warm, honeyed-apple scented laundry a few hours later. It didn't look like it. She couldn't remember having ever owned a black shirt edged with falling forest-green maple leaves down the left side…but then, she couldn't say she remembered a third of the clothes she'd laundered that day. She had a sneaking suspicion that her wardrobe had suddenly increased by several shirts, a couple of pants, a sweatshirt, and a cap, but this particular article of clothing wasn't one she could see herself (or Naruto or Sasuke…well maybe Sasuke…) buying.

"Eh, maybe Sasuke-kun bought it over the summer?" she wondered to herself as she shucked off her sky-blue t-shirt and pulled on the warm, sweet-scented, maple-leaf shirt of unknown origin.

She had to admit the soft cotton was unspeakably comfortable.

She went back to sorting through her clothes with a tiny grin on her face, the result of the really comfortable shirt, until she came across the sweatshirt she'd gotten off a stranger three days ago and the smile dropped off her face like a lead weight.

"How am I ever going to give this back?" she wondered unhappily, fingering the warm article of clothing as nervousness spiked through her system. "I have no idea who he is…"

"Sakura."

Still half-buried under her laundry, laundry she was loath to extricate herself from (it was just so _warm!_), she twisted around to call through the door. "Sasori?"

"The others wanted to know if you preferred Chinese or pizza for our take-out tonight."

Sakura grinned; after a week and a half, she'd gotten used to her housemates occasionally asking for her opinion on food. It was…rather sweet of them. "Chinese? We had pizza last week I think," she called back, returning to her laundry.

"See you downstairs in half an hour."

And half an hour later, she was making her way downstairs, a book tucked under her arm and still dressed in the wonderfully comfy shirt, straight into an argument.

"Look, I damn well don't have your shirt, seriously!" Hidan growled, his arms crossed over his bare chest.

"Well I put it into the washer. Shirts don't disappear into nowhere!" Zetsu retorted irritably, facing off against the older male.

"I don't fu-," Hidan's voice died away abruptly as Sakura appeared at the doorway.

Noticing the senior's attention focused on something behind him, the green-haired junior spun around, his liquid-amber eyes going wide as he took in Sakura's attire.

She was clad simply in a pair of flannel pajama pants, the pattern a cute print of brown and gold sparrows in a beige background. Lewis Carroll's _Alice in Wonderland_ was clasped in her hands. Rose-hued hair fell into wide viridian eyes as a shy blush began to suffuse her cheeks. Clinging loosely to her feminine curves was the shirt in question.

* * *

I love Lewis Caroll's Alice in Wonderland (and Through the Looking Glass), and though I haven't read it recently, it did inspire a little fic called KING (which I decided to write when I noticed that word is also a combination of the first letter of the names of my four favorite Saku pairings, Kakashi, Itachi, Naruto, Gaara...see??? SEEEEE?!...ahem.) so I thought I'd give the book some tribute in Belonging. Not sure if KING will actually get finished or posted, but I'll keep you guys updated on that.

Can anyone guess my favorite scene?? It's probably not hard XD I happen to love the Ino-Kisame interplay as both make sure that the other is looking out for Sakura's interests. Oh and erm, the story is going to pick up from here, so it will more cover the highlights of Sakura's first semester more than her day-to-day life, because otherwise this story wouldn't be finished in under 30 chapters...it'd go on for a good...oh...400. Or something. And who wants to read something that long? For that matter, my brain would probably die out before I finished and then where would any thought of a sequel be?? XD

Thank you for reading and the muse will happily accept all cookie donations to speed her creativity and writing, etc!


	11. Curious Warmth

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! And to everyone who doesn't celebrate the holiday...well...the chapter this week is coming out a little early so yay right? ^^ Comp is dying and I'm in a rush so all I'll say is CONGRATULATIONS to waterflame4991 who won my 200th review prize and was a great support while I was writing this! Thanks a lot, hon! Oh and, I'll be keeping an eye out for my 250th reviewer, as always! Thanks so much you guys for loving this story!

Disclaimer: Naruto and anything else really recognizable in the story is not mine...except the pajamas. Those are mine. XD

* * *

**Chapter 11: Curious Warmth**

"Ano…i-is this your shirt, Zetsu?"

"I…" but Zetsu could hardly think of a response, _any_ response, to her softly stuttered question. If he said it was, Sakura would hardly allow herself to keep it. But if he didn't admit to the truth…someone else would tell her, and she would feel guilty for having taken the shirt. The quandary coiled around him as immobilizing as piano wire.

It didn't help that there was something entirely too mesmerizing about the sight of her dressed so casually in the article of clothing he had been wearing not more than four hours ago. Still, the last thing he wanted was for the petal-haired girl to believe him a liar. Damn. That wasn't the answer he wanted to have to give.

"Yes, the shirt is mine," he heard himself answering, unable to help the slightly melancholy tint that filtered into his voice. "I must have thrown it into your washer instead of Hidan's…I'm sorry Sakura."

"N-no, I shouldn't have been putting on strange shirts that turned up in my laundry," Sakura protested, the wry, unbidden thought of, _'But I'm just so used to strange shirts turning up in my laundry that I didn't realize this wasn't one of Sasuke's, Naruto's, or mine,'_ popping into her head before she could stop herself. Slim fingers unconsciously caressed the shirt's hem.

And the action didn't go unnoticed. By either male.

Hidan narrowed his eyes in unexpected irritation at the soft longing in Sakura's eyes that he was certain she had no idea she was revealing. That the cause for that look was Zetsu's shirt was…irksome. It bothered him, and he wanted nothing more than to demand she go and change shirts right that instant. Preferably into one of his.

Zetsu, on the other hand, felt a tiny smile ghost over his lips. She obviously wanted to keep his shirt; he wasn't surprised, the thing was unbelievably comfortable. And keep it she would. He could always get more shirts.

"Keep it, Sakura. It looks good on you."

The rosy-headed girl's eyes widened minutely as she took in his statement. "Wh-what? Zetsu…I couldn't…"

"You're just going to fu-,"

"Yes," Zetsu interrupted, flashing Hidan an irritated glance. "I've got a lot of shirts and," he sauntered to the pink-cheeked girl and slid warm fingers across her shoulder, "Sakura likes this shirt. Don't you?"

Eyes downcast, Sakura nodded, her cheeks prettily flushed.

"Keep it, Sakura," he repeated, and gently guided her in the direction of the common room where they usually ate their takeout meals, Hidan trailing them like an irritable god of death.

Sakura, on the other hand, said nothing in response as she led the way down the hall. It was so much easier to concentrate on the aroma of sesame seed oil and soy sauce than the fact that she was wearing Zetsu's shirt. Zetsu's _shirt!_ _ZETSU'S_ shirt!

And as she stepped into the common room and instantly became the center of attention, her mind groaned in horror at the various expressions of disgruntlment that appeared in her housemates' faces. _'Something tells me this is_ not_ going to be good…'_

=*~*~*=

_'This shirt is getting to be too much trouble,'_ Sakura moaned mentally, feeling her skin tingle self-consciously as she nervously swallowed down another mouthful of chow mein. She could feel their eyes on her as she ate, in spite of their attempts at idle conversation. _'It's not like I have a tag taped to my forehead that says "Property of Zetsu". That can't be what they're thinking with me in this shirt right? …RIGHT?!'_

"Oi, candy-girl."

She glanced up, her heart jumping into her throat as she tried vainly to force down the surge of blood to her cheeks. "Uh…y-yeah, Kisame?"

The sharkish grin was more than a little amused, with just a touch of mischief that made her swallow hard. "Nice shirt."

"Y-you think so?" she asked, trying hard not to keep her voice from developing a nervous giggle. "I-It's Zetsu's…"

"Yeah, I thought it looked familiar," the senior mentioned, a little too innocently. "How'd you get hold of it?"

_'I've been wondering that myself'_ she mused internally with a tiny, shy smile. "I'm…not sure," she said, turning to Hidan and Zetsu with a puzzled look. "How did it end up with my laundry?"

The two guys in question exchanged a glance as the other boys focused on them.

"Yeah, Zetsu, Hidan, how'd the shirt end up in Sakura's laundry?"

The silver-haired senior was the first one to speak up, shrugging a bare shoulder with an expression of unconcern. "Zetsu wanted to stick one of his shirts into my load of laundry, but obviously put it into Sakura's washer instead."

_'So that's what happened…so why is the suspicion in the room so_ palpable??_" _Sakura thought to herself, trying to keep up her wavering smile.

"A mistake."

"Yes," Zetsu bit out, liquid amber eyes radiating irritation. "I didn't realize where my shirt was until Sakura came downstairs wearing it."

And all the eyes came back to her.

Her cheeks flushed hot as she tried to stuff an entire spring roll into her mouth in an attempt not to have to say anything, but they patiently waited with varying expressions of implacable curiosity until she had no choice but to answer the question in their unwavering gazes.

"N-Naruto and Sasuke sometimes…l-leave me shirts," she stammered as the blush that had started in her cheeks spread down to her neck and up her ears. "I j-just thought it was one of theirs…"

"Wait, wait, hold on, candy-girl," Kisame interrupted, his gill-tattooed features thoughtful. "Your little friends just…give you shirts?"

"Hey, they aren't little!" Sakura retorted, a little of her spirited temper returning. "And don't make me sound like some orphan without clothes! Naruto and Sasuke would grow out of shirts pretty quickly, so I'd get the stuff they no longer wanted, especially since I really like pajamas and make more use their shirts and pants than they ever would…"

"Pants?" the senior asked with an amused tilt of his eyebrows as the other males around him shifted in their seats, discomfited.

Sakura went crimson, slapping a hand over her traitorous mouth. "N-no," they made out faintly, the word escaping from beneath her slim fingers.

Kisame gave her a knowing grin. The flush darkened further.

"Yeees…" she admitted, peeling her fingers off her lips. "Maybe a few pairs?"

The shark-featured male laughed uproariously at the shy admission, covering up the quiet growl of the dark-haired junior seated beside him. "You're such an honest kid, candy-girl," he teased, reaching across the coffee table to ruffle Sakura's strawberry-cream locks. "I'm guessing Zetsu let you keep the shirt?"

"Yeah…" she replied, unnerved by the weird mood changes of the housemate who seemed most like a sibling to her.

Kisame rolled a shoulder. "Well, keep it then. It's your choice," he added, shifting a foot under the coffee table just as Deidara tried to stomp right where it had been a second ago. "If Zetsu doesn't mind you keeping it, it's up to you to make a decision."

_'Don't put this on me!'_ Sakura's mind whined as she glanced from Kisame to the others. _'What to say…'_ The words "I don't mind giving it back," were on the tip of her tongue, ready to tumble off and be spoken…but the look in Zetsu's pale, honey eyes stopped her dead, leaving her dumbstruck.

He didn't want her to cave on the issue, and she couldn't find herself telling him she wouldn't take it.

"I'll keep it," she murmured, her moss-green eyes locked with Zetsu's amber orbs as if she was saying the words only to him.

"What?"

"I'll keep it," she bit out, making a face at the grinning Kisame, even as she tried hard to will her cheeks cool again. "I'm going to take out the trash if anyone wants anything thrown away."

The shark-faced senior chuckled under his breath as the others handed her empty Chinese food cartons.

"You aren't helping," a soft voice muttered beside him, irritation dripping from every syllable.

"Did you say something, Itachi?" Kisame asked as another snicker escaped him.

The Uchiha narrowed onyx eyes as they slid to glance at his best friend. "What about the Rules? Isn't that a violation?"

"I didn't know you cared."

"Hn."

Kisame gave another low chuckle as he cocked his head at the sable-haired junior. "I can't stop her from choosing to wear a shirt she likes. If you have a problem with her in Zetsu's shirt, give her one of yours." He raised an eyebrow at the suddenly contemplative expression on Itachi's patrician features. "That wasn't a serious suggestion."

Itachi looked away, his onyx eyes locked on Sakura's back as she disappeared around the corner down the hall, a garbage bag in hand. His velvety voice was nearly inaudible when he finally spoke, "Nevertheless…"

=*~*~*=

"Well that went well," Sakura mused to herself, tone light in spite of the sarcasm that laced every word. "Note to self, never accept another article of clothing from a guy again. Unless it's Naruto or Sasuke," she amended as an afterthought, her lips tugging into a smile at the thought of her best friends. "I wish you guys were here…"

"You wish who was here?"

She dropped the garbage bag with a shriek that died in her throat when she realized who it was behind her.

"Deidara!" she snapped, pressing a hand to her pounding heart in an attempt to slow its racing beat. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry, sorry," he laughed softly, though the sound came out strangely strained. "I…wanted to know if you needed any help."

"Taking out the trash?" Sakura asked wryly, feeling braver under the semi-anonymity of the twilight and cool night air. "Right."

"Okay, maybe I lied a little," Deidara insisted with a low chuckle, sweeping the garbage bag out of Sakura's hand to deposit it in the bin for her. "I didn't exactly have a ton of time to think of a good excuse though."

"So what's up?" Sakura asked him, heading back to the dorm.

The silence that met her words made her pause, stopping her at the door front. Brows wrinkling with concern, she turned to face the blond who had followed her. "Deidara?"

She reached out to him.

Warm fingers closed around her wrists, pressing them back to the door behind her, placing them on either side of her head. The blond's taller body moved closer still, until they were almost flush against one another, him against her and her against the door at her back. Her heart leapt into her throat, pulse racing.

"D-Deidara?"

He buried his face against the crook of her neck, muttering into the fabric of her shirt.

"Deidara. What…" she struggled to get the words out, "what's wrong?"

She was…strangely unafraid in his arms, though her heartbeat fluttered like the wing beats of a hummingbird. But, she wasn't terrified or paralyzed by fear, as she had been when Kidomaru had bullied her. It was a bizarre nervousness that started in the pit of her stomach and left her a little lightheaded.

"Shirt is really soft," was what she finally understood, when he pulled away far enough that his lips weren't muffled in her clothing.

"That's…why I wanted to wear it…" she told him, as matter-of-factly as she could with the older male's face pressed to her shoulder, his lips now gently caressing her body through the fabric in a way that made her face want to heat.

"N-not because…because of Zetsu?"

"What??" Sakura glanced down at the blond with a confused expression painting her elfin features. "I wouldn't care that I was wearing his shirt unless it was comfortable or I liked him and since I don't like Zetsu that way…"

Deidara stiffened as she held him, hands lightly pressed to his shoulders. "You…you don't?"

"No; where are you getting all this?" Sakura asked, gently giving him a squeeze. "I can't hear you," she added when Deidara's words were reduced to muttering once more.

"I said it doesn't matter any more," he said breathlessly, his pale features slightly flushed as he pulled away. "It doesn't…"

His lips were on hers before he could finish his sentence.

Sakura stiffened in his arms, adrenaline rushing through her system as she froze. The tough of his lips were surprisingly gentle in spite of the suddenness of his kiss, soft as his thumbs lightly stroked her racing pulse points at each wrist. It wasn't at all like the forceful, bruising kiss she had been expecting, and the considerate nature of his touch made something inside her melt, just a little.

As if sensing her relaxation, his tongue swept out to taste her bottom lip and the velvet touch wrenched a surprised gasp from her throat.

He invaded her mouth, tasting, exploring; each sweep of his tongue making her a little bit more breathless with each touch. And finally, gingerly, she returned the gesture, sliding her own soft tongue against his in innocent curiosity.

The kiss turned heated in an instant, the blond's grip on her wrists tightening as he pressed her body flush to hers, a breathless moan escaping him to be swallowed by the crimson-cheeked girl in his arms. She gave a tiny whimper in response to his warmth, nearly lost in the soul-stealing sensation.

_His fingertips brushed warm against her cheek, making it grow pink under his touch. His thumb slid down from her cheekbone to caress her bottom lip…and pluck away a grain of rice._

_ "You missed this one," he teased gently, licking it off his finger._

_ Heat spread across her face as her viridian eyes widened._

The memory exploded through her mind as she gasped into Deidara's mouth, this time not from pleasure. Heart pounding fiercely, she pushed him away, her thoughts a sudden, chaotic flurry.

_'Itachi…'_

She couldn't understand why the thought of him and that silly indirect kiss made her heart squeeze so tightly, her lips still tingling from Deidara's touch. But she couldn't control the strange thought that fluttered through her mind, flushing her darker than before and pushing her to break free of Deidara's bewildered grip to flee back into the house.

_'Would kissing Itachi…be anything like kissing Deidara?'_

The curiosity in her thoughts frightened her, leaving a disoriented and dismayed blond in her wake.

=*~*~*=

"Wh-what _was_ that?"

She had managed to get past the second floor undetected by her housemates, but now, halfway up the stairs to her room, she allowed herself a moment to be utterly discombobulated.

"What is wrong with me?"

She wasn't exactly sure if she was talking about the kiss with Deidara, or thinking of Itachi in the middle of it, but suffice it to say that she was completely confused, puzzled by her own strange behavior.

_'He kissed me! And I kissed him back! And I've…I've never…and I _liked_ it…'_ She shook her head, as if the action could dislodge the muddle of thoughts in her head. _'D-do I like him? Or Itachi? Or am I just crazy?! I can't believe I-,'_

"Sakura."

She jumped, her eyes flying up the stairs to the face of the last person she had wanted to see just then.

"Itachi…"

"Can I speak to you a moment."

It wasn't a question, and with a sinking feeling in her gut, she nodded mutely and followed him up the last steps to the third floor.

_'Crap…'_ He was tense; she could see it in every line of his being, his shoulders tight as her wound-up nerves. Something was bothering him and, while she had never seen Uchiha Itachi angry, she was pretty certain it was a sight she didn't want to be privy to. He led the way to her room, footsteps silent as the padding tread of a jungle cat on the hardwood floor.

"I-Itachi…"

The gut-wrenching worry grew when he didn't answer her, merely waiting for her to catch up.

She drew near him with an audible swallow.

"Do you usually wear shirts that randomly show up in your laundry?" he asked silkily, elegant fingers gently caressing the hem of her shirt in a way that drew another curl of nervousness to her mind.

"W-well…Naruto and Sasuke…when we go camping…and stuff," she swallowed, trying to force down her timidity and regain a little composure, "Naruto can be pretty messy so our stuff…it gets all confused. I've ended up with their clothes on more than one occasion. It just…it stopped getting to me…"

She jumped at the low growl that issued from the sable-haired male's throat, her body getting caged in against a door for the second time that night.

"So unconcerned," he whispered, his dark, cobalt-obsidian eyes radiating an emotion that Sakura couldn't read. "You don't even know…"

"Wh-what do you…"

"This," he answered, anger tingeing his reply as his hand fisted in the fabric of her shirt, "Walking around in a guy's shirt like it's nothing when everyone else sees it as a claim…" he bit off the rest of his sentence at the bewildered wonderment in her eyes. "So…clueless."

The entire evening had been a nightmare rollercoaster, the insanity of discovering the shirt in her laundry was Zetsu's, to the interrogation at dinner, and kissing Deidara outside the back door. Her emotions had cycled through fear, embarrassment, and confusion more times than she could count in the space of a few short hours, and finally it gripped onto the only emotion that could come to her defense in such a situation: anger. The heat of it roared through her veins, giving her courage.

"_Clueless?_" she asked, the word dripping acid as it left her mouth. "I hardly think you're in a position to accuse me of cluelessness! I may not have realized the shirt was Zetsu's but I was well within my rights to assume the shirt was probably Sasuke's. And furthermore," she added, getting up to steam as she crossed her arms over her chest, "what exactly does it matter to you what my wardrobe is? You're not my…you have no right to be offended over my choice of clothes, _Uchiha-san._ I really don't need this from you right now, not when I can't even make sense of my _own_ thoughts after Deidara just ki-," she went crimson, slapping a hand over her traitorous mouth.

_'Holy hell!'_

There was nothing to do at this point but retreat…as fast as humanly possible.

She yanked her keys out of her pocket, turning her back on him as she fumbled furiously with the lock, her racing heartbeat not enough to drown out her thoughts.

_'I just yelled at Uchiha Itachi…whom I may or may not like… I called him Uchiha-san…and then I all but blurted out that I'd kissed Deidara…'_ her mind whined unhappily, _'He's going to HATE me…'_

"Stop." The hand closed around her wrist just as the door in front of her unlocked.

"Let go of me," she said tightly, refusing to turn around.

The grip on her wrist tightened marginally. "No." And without any warning, she was jerked around, and pulled into a warm chest.

"L-let go!" Sakura yelped, fighting him as he held her. "I'm not-!"

"I'm sorry."

Whatever she had been expecting from him, it wasn't that, and she stilled as his warm hand gently traced the ridges of her spine. "I'm sorry, Sakura…you are right…I don't have a reason to dictate to you…"

"Itachi…" the quietness in his voice sounded too much like heartbreak, and she wanted to fist her hands in his shirt and argue with him, convince him that she hadn't meant it like that at all…

"But I want to. I want to have that sort of place in your life…"

Her breath stuttered in her throat, her cheeks warming at the stoic teen's declaration. "I didn't mean," she started, trying to make things right again between them, "I didn't mean that you didn't. You do, Itachi…everyone in Akatsuki dorm is…means…" She wasn't quite sure what she meant to say, only that she wanted him to know that she was finding him and the rest of the house growing closer and closer to her heart. She was finding that she felt for them as she did with Naruto and Sasuke; a little bit like family.

A gentle touch feathered over her forehead, his breath warm as he whispered into her skin, "You see us a little bit like you see my brother and his best friend?"

Cheeks warm, she nodded, butterflies taking flight in her stomach at the light caress of his lips against her temple.

They stood like that, in silence, for long minutes, his arms around her as she slowly relaxed to his touch. And in that silence she could feel the beating of his heart, pressed against the palm of one hand, coming down from a quick throb to an even, steady tempo. It was amazing, how he seemed to relax with her in his arms…and how easily she could accept his touch.

There was something almost…familiar about it.

Comfortable.

She felt his heartbeat pick up a little speed as she shifted to lay her head on his shoulder.

"Will…will you tell me what you meant about claims?" she asked when his pulse finally slowed again.

"Maybe," he murmured, reluctantly pulling away from the warm female in his arms. "But not tonight."

"Why?" she queried, feeling a little petulant at not getting an answer to assuage her curiosity.

A warm chuckle rumbled through his form to hers, the sensation flushing her cheeks as Itachi took the opportunity to sweep his hands down her sides to gently grip her hips.

"Because you have enough to think about tonight without me adding to it," he told her cryptically. A rare smile flashed over his features, the tint of melancholy in it so faint that Sakura didn't catch it when it stopped the childish mewl that rose in her throat.

"Itachi…"

"Goodnight, Sakura," he murmured warmly, leaning forward to gently lay another feather-light kiss on the crown of her head, before leaving a very confused sixteen-year-old to wander bemusedly into her room.

Shutting the door only to slide down it and bury her rose-pink face in her hands, she whimpered in confusion, her jumbled thoughts shy and disoriented in her mind. "Why do they both have to be so _confusing?_" she moaned to no one in particular, dumbfounded by the blond who had kissed her, and the obsidian-eyed one who had held her like something more than precious.

Pressing her head back into the door she sighed.

"It's going to be a long school year…"

* * *

Tell me if you liked this chapter ^^ things are going to be picking up from here on out, so hold on to your computer chairs! And uh...your reviews fuel my passion for writing and the muse appreciates any cookies you'd give her, so please feel free to drop me a line!

Thanks for reading!


	12. Unexpectedly

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto, Hallmark, or anything else that seems to belong to reality.

It's done, it's done, it's done, it's looooong! Thirteen pages without any author notes! Isn't that pretty unbelievable??? I'm completely and utterly thrilled to be finished with this, and glad that I found a title I actually liked (had one heck of a time picking one out as musicinabottle will attest to). Besides the record length of thirteen pages, this chapter has one other record…which I will tell you guys at the end XD that way you can go back and double check to make sure I'm right.

Also, congratulations to himeko63 for being the 250th review to Belonging! Your prize is showing up in the very next chapter XD hope you like it!

The title refers to all the changes that happened in Sakura's life this chapter. Obviously, unexpectedly XD

Enjoy as I drown us all in a fluff-fest!

* * *

**Chapter 12: Unexpectedly**

"Haruno-san."

Sakura winced internally, forcing herself not to show any outward signs of her consternation as a shadow passed over her open textbook. Schooling her features into an expression of mild curiosity, she lifted her face to the liquid-amber eyes of her most hated teacher. "Yes, sensei?"

"I'd like to see you at my desk after class; I believe we may have something to discuss."

"Yes, sensei."

_'It _would_ have been too much to hope that he'd leave me alone for good,'_ Sakura's mind huffed as she turned back to her reading. But it had been a handful of weeks since her first detention, and he hadn't inflicted more than small miseries on her. She'd, little by little, come to believe he might leave her alone.

Obviously that was not the case.

Warm fingers wrapped around her own, giving them a gentle squeeze.

A crimson flush passed over her elfin features as she slid her viridian eyes over to her lab partner. Sasori said nothing, his eyes trained on his textbook, but she couldn't ignore the feel of his hand around hers. And she didn't pull away.

It was strange. Now a little over a month into the school year, she was growing more and more comfortable with her housemates, to the point where this gesture of Sasori's didn't do more than cause an explosion of butterflies in her stomach; a natural reaction for a sixteen-year-old girl to an attractive senior. She hoped that maybe her guy-shy tendencies had disappeared due to her exposure to so many males, but she'd had little to no contact with guys other than Naruto, Sasuke, her housemates, and occasionally Shikamaru. So she wasn't sure.

_'But it'd be nice to be normal…'_ With a sigh, she gently slid her fingers out of Sasori's grasp, turning the page of her textbook as she made another note on her papers.

"Essay presentations will begin next week Monday," Orochimaru admonished silkily, causing everyone in the class to jump. The entire class period had been spent quietly working on their individual essay chapters, and it was the first sound other than his soft-spoken (but somehow no less menacing) request to speak to her after class that had shattered the silence. "Class dismissed."

Sakura sighed as she shoved her textbook into her backpack, not looking forward to her upcoming conversation. "Go, Sasori," she told her housemate who lingered at her side, nodding towards the door. "Your class is on the other side of campus and you'll be late if you don't leave now…"

"Sakura."

"I'll be fine." She smiled. "Really."

Casting her a look with violet eyes that swam with doubt, the redhead nodded stiffly, conceding her request, and disappeared out the door.

"Haruno-san," Orochimaru called softly, his features tugged into a brittle smile. "I believe we need to discuss your test."

_'What does he want to ask me about?'_ Sakura wondered, trying to keep a frown off her forehead. _'I'm pretty sure I did well on it…'_

"I am…concerned for your understanding of pH and acid-base titration. Your mathematics here," he clarified when her eyes finally reflected her utter confusion. "Haruno-san, this shows that you seem to have no grasp of the concept of pKa and calculating it."

Sakura's verdant eyes landed on her untidy scrawl, noticing the question he tapped with a sinister joy.

_'But that's-!'_

"Sensei, this is just a simple mistake," Sakura protested, her heart beginning to pound in her ears as she clasped her trembling fingers together behind her back. "I miscalculated a few numbers, but that doesn't mean I don't understand the concept!"

"Nevertheless, Haruno-san," Orochimaru replied smoothly, his liquid amber eyes glittering with malice. "You have shifted from an old curriculum to a new one. It stands to reason that there may be gaps in your education. I believe you will benefit from a tutor."

"A tutor," she gasped, tacking on "sensei," as an afterthought. "I r-really don't think…"

"A tutor, Haruno-san," the pallid teacher told her with another knife-blade sharp smile. "I will choose one for you-,"

"I'll do it, sensei," a warm tenor sounded through the deserted classroom. "I believe you won't have any objections."

Sakura whirled around, her heart leaping into her throat as her body instinctively flinched away from the unfamiliar masculine voice.

The motion didn't go unnoticed by the chemistry teacher whose sibilant smile only grew more malicious with dark amusement.

"No, indeed, I don't have any problem with one of my Advanced Chemistry students tutoring Haruno-san here," he said, his voice suddenly too silky with victory. "I believe you are free Thursday after school?"

"Yes," Sakura answered in the affirmative as the other student echoed her word.

"Good. I expect you both here this week."

"Yes, sensei…"

The smile her chemistry teacher turned on her was icy with scorn, his eyes gleaming with exultant loathing. "I believe you will acquit yourself well, Hyuuga-san."

The chocolate-haired junior in the doorway inclined his head stiffly, his milky eyes, tinted faintly grey, fixed on the pale sophomore standing by the front desk with the huge moss-green eyes. "My name is Neji," he introduced himself in a reserved tenor. "I will see you Thursday, Haruno-san."

Sakura managed a tiny, "See you Thursday, Neji-san," before she fled the room, her pale face going crimson as soon as she was out the door.

_'Not _another_ guy!'_

=*~*~*=

"Something's up, seriously."

Sakura's fingers tensed on her pencil as she scribbled notes down, not daring to glance at the sleek male sitting next to her. "There's nothing wrong," she whispered, "now stop asking before Ibiki-sensei catches us talking in class."

"Like I give a damn," Hidan replied with a smirk and a lazy, obvious stretch just before their teacher turned around.

Sakura grimaced worriedly at the outline their sensei had put on the board. Her silver-haired housemate wasn't even taking notes, his pencil twirling around between his fingers. "Well I care," she hissed softly, her eyes finally flickering over to the smirking senior beside her. "And I really don't need another teacher on my back today."

Hidan's vibrant, crimson-violet eyes narrowed instantly, his once-carefree expression melting into one of dark displeasure.

"What'd the snake-scum do?" he asked sharply, his voice low and harsh with anger.

Sakura forced herself not to blush, glad that the low lights of the classroom as Ibiki-sensei moved from writing on the blackboard to showing them an in-class documentary and constant exposure to her housemates kept the tiny amount of pinkness in her cheeks from being obvious.

The thought of her new tutor was uncomfortable enough without having to think about the reactions her housemates would have. She knew that they were aware of her guy-shy quirk now, and that they showed unusual protectiveness, making sure that she felt as comfortable in school as possible. They had achieved this by helping her avoid as many males as they could manage, which was sweet of them even if it wasn't as effective as eliminating the problem altogether.

They probably wouldn't enjoy learning that Orochimaru had picked a guy to tutor her in the chemistry classroom on Thursdays.

"Orochimaru asked to talk to me after class…I made a stupid mistake on my first test, so he questioned my abilities and assigned me a student tutor to study with me on Thursdays after school in his classroom," she explained in a soft rush, wanting to get out the majority of the information as quickly as possible. It would be enough to keep Hidan irritable and occupied for the fifteen minutes they had left of class.

"Study…with someone. In the snake-scum's class after school." She could hear the icicles on every syllable as he bit out the words with anger so tightly controlled that she couldn't stop the shiver that curled down her spine.

"Yeah…" _'And if you're going to react like that to just the information that I'm spending Thursday afternoons in Orochimaru-sensei's classroom, I'm not saying a word about my tutor,'_ her mind added with a flutter of nervousness.

"That _bas-_,"

"Hidan. Sakura."

'_Oh crap…'_

The rose-haired girl half-turned in her seat, cheeks paling at the familiar sound of their teacher's voice, quietly gravelly behind them.

"I do not permit students to talk during my class," he told them, his voice still pitched low so that only they could hear him. "And profanity is unacceptable," he added, his dark eyes hard as flint as they cast towards Hidan.

"S-sorry, sensei, we won't do it again," Sakura apologized quickly, her cheeks warming as Ibiki's eyes landed on her again.

His scarred head nodded in acknowledgement, accepting her apology with ease. A small knot of fear in Sakura's chest loosened. Ibiki was apparently one of the more serious teachers, who were also fair and understanding to this first infraction of hers.

Hidan, on the other hand…

The silver-haired senior had his arms crossed over his chest; every pore exuding a smug arrogance that had clashed wills with the scar-faced sensei on many occasions that Sakura had had front row seats to over the past weeks.

"Hidan."

"Yeah?" the senior asked with a quiet nonchalance that set warning bells off in Sakura's head.

"Hidan, just apologize, please," she cut in hurriedly, unintentionally interrupting their sensei with her sudden plea. She caught his dark, vibrant eyes with her own verdant gaze, growing slowly more crimson as he turned to her. Her voice caught in her throat, but she forced herself to speak, "Please…"

"I'm…sorry."

The words were surprisingly gentle, catching all three of them by surprise as they escaped the silver-haired male. Sakura's viridian eyes widened in shock, her heartbeat pounding in her ears and blocking out all other sounds as if unable to process what they'd just heard. A quick glance at Ibiki standing behind her seat showed that the teacher was equally astounded by the declaration, but swiftly recovering.

"Apology accepted, don't let it happen again."

And then he was gone, striding down between the aisles of the desks as if nothing had happened, though a telltale look of consideration gleamed in his eyes.

Silence reigned in the back of the classroom where they sat, enveloping the both of them in its blanket of soundlessness. The video reeled onward, filling the empty air with a too-detailed description of the different types of bone fractures.

"Hidan?" Sakura whispered presently, shyly letting her voice fill the void between them.

"Yeah?" the silver-haired male responded, his eyes fixed on the white screen at the front of the class.

"Thank you…"

He made a noncommittal noise. "You didn't look like you needed another teacher on your back today," he told her with contrived carelessness, repeating her earlier words.

This time, she couldn't force back the hot blush that rushed to her cheeks. "Th-thanks…"

"It's nothing," Hidan muttered as his eyes flickered to her crimson face and away, the beginning of a grin starting to tug his lips. _'Nothing compared to what Kisame has prepared tonight…and you look like you need it.'_ The image of Sakura's distressed expression earlier flashed before his mind's eye again, and he couldn't squash the strange ache that knotted his gut at the memory.

'_I've never cared about anyone else's feelings much before, so why the hell does your pain bother me so badly?'_

=*~*~*=

"Guys? Kisame? Sasori? Guys??" Her voice echoed off the walls, filling the corridor with an aura of emptiness. Sakura frowned; her fingers minutely straightening the hem of her pajama top as she mentally ticked off all the places her housemates could possibly be this late at night. It was almost ten at night and the daily ritual of eating dinner together before someone turned on the TV and half the guys argued over which show to watch while the other half tried to find someplace quiet to study or do other things had ended almost two hours ago.

She had retreated upstairs to vent her frustration on her snake-scum sensei by finishing up her chemistry homework, but having found herself stalled on a problem had made her way back down to the common room…only to find everyone gone.

"Where _are_ they?" she mused aloud, the furrow on her brow deepening further as she padded from the kitchen (which she had already checked twice) to the stairs. She'd tried the second floor as well, _and_ checked the bathroom, to no avail, and she was getting a little concerned. "Mou…guys…this isn't funny…"

She ascended the stairwell, the only noise she could hear the quiet shuffle of her stolen-from-Sasuke tomato-print pajama pants. It was eerie to wander such a quiet house, and not for the first time, she suppressed a little shudder.

"Hey, candy-girl."

"Kisame!" she responded, too happy to see another one of her housemates to put up her perfunctory protest at his usage of the silly nickname. "Where is everyone?"

"I'll show you," he replied, his features painted with the most mischievous grin.

Sakura's relief blotted out any apprehension she might have felt at his expression.

"Come on…"

The walked down the second floor hallway, past the rooms occupied by her male housemates, up to the third floor where she slept, and past it to one of the doors at the far end of the hall. She had never bothered to open them, knowing one of them was another room and the last of these a closet she'd never had use for. But she raised a curious eyebrow when it was the last of these Kisame led her to.

"Good thing you're dressed warmly," he commented, grinning as he took in her black and orange sweatshirt with the nine-tailed fox design that stretched over her front and curled around her torso to spread over her shoulder blades in the back.

Sakura fidgeted under his gaze, strangely relieved that he couldn't see the "Property of Naruto" sign at the back of her neck hidden by her rose-petal hair. Or the Akatsuki shirt she wore underneath it. For some reason, the thought of any of her housemates knowing that she had taken to often wearing the shirt as sleeping attire made butterflies explode in her stomach.

"Kisame, I'm pretty sure no one's in the closet…" her words died away as he opened the door, the light from the hall illuminating the interior.

A single ladder filled the space, leading up into a trapdoor in the ceiling where the soft rumble of masculine voices floated down through the opening.

"Where…"

"Go on up," Kisame ordered with a shark-toothed grin. "You're going to love it."

Nodding dumbfoundedly, the rose-haired sixteen-year-old climbed up the ladder, her head popping up through the opening to be greeted by the most amazing sight.

"Ooh…"

Her housemates, casually stretched out over a number of blankets that were laid over the gentle slope of the building's rooftop, turned at her soft gasp, their welcoming expressions clear even through the darkness.

"Wh-what...what are we…?"

"Stargazing," Itachi explained simply as he caught her hand, steadying her as she clambered barefoot over the lip of the trapdoor and onto the rough roof shingles. "The stars are particularly clear here."

"They're beautiful," Sakura breathed as she squeezed in between the elder Uchiha and Deidara, who pressed a warm, Styrofoam cup into her hands.

"We also made hot chocolate, yeah," he told her, his cheerful grin catching the moonlight alluringly as he capped the thermos bottle. "Because it's cold up here, even if we're all dressed up warm."

And they were; as far as she could tell they were similarly dressed like herself in pajama bottoms and sweatshirts, jackets, or sweaters.

"Come on, get comfortable, candy-girl," Kisame teased, gently nudging her farther downward so he could squeeze in behind her onto the large blanket the younger three occupied. "If you don't hurry, you'll miss the start."

"The start of what?" Sakura asked, humming in pleasure as she sipped the sweet, hot drink.

"Patience," Itachi murmured beside her, his voice sending a shiver through her slender frame that had nothing to do with the late October chill. "You'll find out soon enough…"

"No fair," the sixteen-year-old muttered mock-sulkily under her breath, earning her a raised eyebrow from the soft-spoken male to her right that teased a giggle from her. "Okay, okay, Itachi, I'll wait…"

She leaned back into the soft warmth of the blanket under her, abandoning her now-empty cup of hot cocoa as she gazed up at the starry expanse. "You know, patience isn't one of my – Ah!"

Stars streaked around them, like a blazing rain of light from heaven, stealing her very breath away. Hands flew to her lips to capture the cry of pleasure that escaped her, viridian eyes growing impossibly wide as the liquid light of the stars bathed her elfin features their unearthly iridescence.

She couldn't have said how long it lasted, the starfall so captivating that she lost all ability to tell the passage of time, but whether it lasted an instant or for centuries, she felt as though she didn't breathe the entire time as she stared, mesmerized, at the heavens.

A million shooting stars surrounded her, dizzyingly bright and beautifully transient.

All too soon, the luminescent beauty drew to a close, and Sakura realized that she was trembling. Feeling detached from the world, like she was part of something more than herself in that moment, she glanced to the side to realize that her housemates were finished watching the show of lights, and now regarding her with an air of anticipation.

And though being under their combined gazes would have made her unerringly nervous normally, she couldn't find herself becoming either embarrassed or shy. Affection to rival her feelings for Naruto and Sasuke, her mother, and maybe even Ino, flooded her as her eyes glanced from one housemate to another, warming her more thoroughly than the hot chocolate had. That they had planned and done this for her…

She sat up, a lump rose to her throat as a trembling smile curved her lips.

"I've never seen something so beautiful in my entire life…thank you so much everyone!"

_'It was…so wonderful…'_

"You should thank Kisame danna, yeah," Deidara told her, his voice dispelling the otherworldly aura that had surrounded them during the meteor shower. "He's the one who did most of the planning."

"Hey, I can hold my own against Hallmark," the lanky male chuckled as Sakura twisted around on the blanket to face him. "Did a good job, didn't I, candy-girl."

A brilliant smile lit Sakura's features as she impulsively catapulted herself into Kisame's lap, straddling him with childish carelessness as she flung her arms around the stunned senior. "It was absolutely wonderful! If I had a big brother, I'm pretty sure you'd have him completely and utterly beat!" she exclaimed into his rough, spiky cobalt hair, squeezing his neck hard enough to make him short of breath. "Thank you _so_ much, Kisame-nii!"

Beneath her, the gill-tattooed senior stiffened, not entirely because of the sudden bundle of ecstatic female in his arms.

_'Oh…crap.'_

Unconscious to the sudden bolt of terror that had thrummed through the male beneath her, Sakura chattered onward, praising the one she had just staked as a surrogate brother.

Behind her, Itachi tensed, his hands clenching unexpectedly into fists at the pain that shot through his chest at Sakura's words.

_'Tachi-nii!_

The honorific had been the one she had given him when they were children, a special way of referring to him that she hadn't even conferred onto the two males who had been her best friends. And hearing it again after so many years, especially in conjunction with his own best friend and roommate…was excruciating.

An unexpected surge of jealousy followed the pain, making him want to do nothing so much as tear the young female from his friend's lap and lay indisputable claim upon her so that even _she_ was made aware that she was his and no one else's.

He swallowed thickly, his better nature forcing down his basal instincts.

_'It's Sakura…Sakura's decision if she wants to call Kisame that,'_ he reiterated to himself. _'I have no right to feel like this.'_

But it didn't stop him from having to tear his eyes away from the sight of his best friend in the girl's innocent embrace.

And the only comfort he felt was in the fact that his friend seemed to understand his pain and was attempting to extricate himself from Sakura's grasp as politely as possible.

_'Holy hell, Itachi's furious,'_ Kisame groaned mentally, catching the look in his roommate's eyes that was equal parts anger and melancholy. He knew better than anyone how deeply the dark-haired male's feelings ran for the sixteen-year-old on his lap, and could easily guess how the Uchiha felt, seeing her acting so intimate with the shark-faced senior.

_'Not to mention the other guys…'_ This time Kisame's wince was evident as he noted his housemates who regarded him with varying expressions of irritation. _'Looks like I'll get to see what my Rules are like from the other side…'_

"Come on, Sakura," he chided, cursing the nervous tint that shaded his voice. "You're heavy, candy-girl."

"Am not!" she contested hotly, though the giggle that escaped her told him she was far from annoyed at his accusation. "But I'll get off," she added, grinning as she slid from his lap back to her original seat. "Stars to see, after all…"

_'Anything that keeps the others from flaying me alive…'_

He liked yanking their chains as much as the next guy, they could be a pretty serious bunch when they were in that kind of a mood and could use a little loosening up, but he also liked living. And if Sakura had kept her seat on his lap, his eighteen years of living would have stopped at eighteen years.

"Thank you guys so much," Sakura breathed, breaking into Kisame's mental thank-kami-I'm-still-alive rant. "This is utterly amazing. Really."

She settled down again, her back against the roof's gently sloping shingles, as she rubbed her chilly hands together, distracted by the loveliness of stars above.

"Here, yeah."

Warm hands wrapped around her wrist, gently tugging her left hand away from her right one to gently caress the cold appendage.

Her cheeks warmed as she turned a little, her eyes catching Deidara's cerulean ones that shone in the darkness with strange emotion. "D-Deidara…"

"I'd take the other one too but then you couldn't see the stars, yeah," the blond explained, bringing the chilled hand to his lips as he let his warm breath caress her skin.

"Th-thanks…"

"No problem," he replied, massaging warmth into her left hand as he leaned towards her until his breath tickled the sensitive shell of her ear, sending hot sparks flashing through her.

The butterflies that she had hoped had vacated her stomach returned in full force as she blushed and tried to watch the stars again, pulling her sleeve over her right hand in an attempt to keep it warm.

Stars shone overhead, their softly twinkling lights beautiful and clear in the midnight sky in ways that they wouldn't have been had the school been closer to the city. Out here, a decent distance from the majority of the artificial lighting, it was possible to see the faint glimmer of the Milky Way.

"Hey, Itachi, did you know that there's a legend saying that two lovers who were separated to either sides of the Milky Way walk over a bridge made of flying ravens to see each…" her softly whispered words died away as she turned to find the elder Uchiha's eyes firmly looking elsewhere, the lines of his face deepened by some emotion she felt hesitant to name.

"Ita…"

She swallowed the rest of his name, pulling back her free hand when he stiffened at the sound of her voice.

'_Wh-what…'_

A strange ache squeezed her, like a vise wrapped around her ribcage, and she turned back to the ethereal beauty of the stars, wishing they would take away the curious hurt that welled up at Itachi's unresponsiveness.

'_Since when did it matter this much to me?'_

As if sensing her distress, Deidara scooted closer, until the strands of his blond hair spread in a corona about his head mingled with her rose-petal hair and his arm pressed to hers from wrist to shoulder. The sweetness of his gesture brought a shy smile to her lips, and she surprised them both by giving his fingers a little squeeze of affection.

His warmth soothed her, slowing her heartbeat until she felt herself beginning to drift off into a light doze, the sky becoming one gigantic nightlight to stave away unpleasant dreams, the rustling crackle of dry leaves her bizarre lullaby.

Wind in the trees flowed frozen and icy over the rooftop.

Sakura shivered, the fingers of her right hand drawing into a fist as she tried to hold in the little remaining warmth in her cold skin.

Hesitant fingers slid across her knuckles, gently unclenching the fist she had made of her dominant hand. She stiffened as the slim appendages warmed the chilled flesh, her eyes darting to the dark-haired individual on her right.

He said nothing, avoiding her gaze as he laced his fingers with hers.

_'Itachi…'_

His warm hands massaged heat back into her fingers, filling them with pins and needles as a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold worked its way across her shoulders.

_'What is he…?'_

He had turned her hand, palm up in his, and then begun to slowly, gently, trace letters across her now-warm skin.

_'What? I-M-S…'_

A rose-petal flush worked its way across her pale, wind-chapped cheeks as she went completely still, making certain that she hadn't mistaken the phrase Itachi traced on the palm of her hand.

After several repetitions he stopped, as if uncertain of her response, and she laid any fears he might have to rest as she gently, shyly, laced her fingers with his.

_'I'm sorry.'_

His words melted away the hurt she had felt earlier, leaving her warm from feelings that originated from the hands wrapped around each of her own. The stars above blurred gently as her long lashes shaded her eyes, her body becoming utterly relaxed under the combined feeling of Itachi and Deidara's hands in hers. It was too peaceful, the light of the stars and the quiet sounds of nature gently lulling her into inky oblivion.

With a final, contented sigh, Sakura let go of the very last of her nervousness around her housemates – just this one time – and let sleep claim her.

=*~*~*=

"Come on, candy-girl, get up."

"Nnh," the girl muttered, trying to turn onto her side away from Kisame's insistent voice, only to be held back by the fingers laced around her left hand.

"Come on…"

"Kisame."

"Hn?" the lanky senior asked, using the patented Uchiha all-purpose phrase as he half-turned to face one of his year-mates. "Kakuzu?"

"I will carry Sakura to her room."

Kisame raised an eyebrow, his expression plain by moonlight, obviously rather taken aback by the statement. "You?"

"It cannot be you," Kakuzu told him bluntly, luminous glass-green eyes serious. "By your own Rules, it cannot be you."

_'Crap…knew this would happen…'_ Kisame didn't like conceding on such a point, but the fact of the matter was that Kakuzu was right. By the very Rules Kisame had set down, he couldn't just carry Sakura back to her room like it was nothing. Especially not after having had Sakura on his lap, no matter how platonic it had been. Emotionally anyway. He was pretty sure none of the others was taking it as just platonic on a physical level.

"And you're offering to do it instead?" the dark-eyed senior asked, unable to keep the note of skepticism from leaking into his voice.

"Better me than any of the others."

There he went again, making sensible points like it was nothing. Had Kisame been one to choose, he would have picked out Kakuzu or Zetsu because Itachi was probably still somewhat possessive after the 'Kisame-nii' thing, Deidara…was Deidara and his emotions could have been seen by a blind man, Sasori wasn't as good at hiding the way he looked at the girl as he thought he was, Hidan…Kisame skated over that thought remembering Itachi's reaction to what had transpired between Hidan and Sakura on the girl's first morning at Akatsuki, and he himself was out of the question.

_'Damn.'_

But…

"You don't usually volunteer for nothing. Will you really do nothing?"

Kakuzu's eyes flickered to the slumbering rosy-headed girl at the roof's edge, holding herself in place by clinging to the hands of Itachi and Deidara, unwilling to let go of them even in sleep. The smile he turned to the shark-featured male was brittle.

"I'm no altruist."

Neither the dark-haired junior, nor the blond, protested as they extricated their hands from Sakura's grasp and let the brunet senior spirit the girl away.

_'I'm no altruist…'_

"Nn…"

It was true; he would try nothing. And though the others, cleaning up the remains of their stargazing night behind him as he slowly descended the ladder with the sleeping girl in his arms, might find it surprising, it wasn't because of a lack of compensation.

Holding her like this was compensation enough.

But Kakuzu couldn't bring himself to stake some sort of claim on the girl without her consent. Like the usage of money, everything about her to him was an agreement between individuals. A transaction, almost, though with none of the mercenary feeling the word provoked.

It was a twisted sort of honor, he supposed, but one that he lived by stringently.

"Sakura." She didn't rouse, instead turning her face into his chest to block out the soft rumble of his voice, and while he thought maybe he was suffering an unexpected attack of arrhythmia from her innocent affection, he still had to get her into her bedroom. "Sakura, where are you keys?"

"Door…open," she mumbled, still asleep as far as he could tell.

But asleep or not, she could apparently still process information, because her bedroom door was indeed unlocked.

Considering they'd spirited her away unexpectedly, he could only come to the conclusion that she left the door unlocked on a regular basis…a thought that he quickly thrust away, to peruse at a later date in great detail.

And then, because he was human for all that he considered his relationship with her a transaction, he forced down the strawberry tint that threatened to color his tanned cheeks and made a clinical attempt to strip her of her vibrantly orange sweatshirt.

A grin blossomed across his sun-kissed features as a very familiar black-and-red shirt came into view.

_'How often does she wear this?'_ he wondered as he tossed her sweatshirt over the back of a chair and pulled the covers over her.

However often it was, it was a little secret he was going to be keeping to himself. An amused smirk fluttered over his lips as he considered his thoughts. For once, he had found a piece of information he didn't even feel like pricing.

Behind him in the darkened bedroom, Sakura's chest rose and fell with her slumbering breaths, the crimson letters of the word 'Akatsuki' covered by the silken fabric of her covers.

=*~*~*=

"Awww that's _adorable!_ I can't believe they did that!" _'Even _I_ didn't expect them to pull something like that off,'_ Ino thought to herself, hiding her impressed amusement at the Akatsuki's ingenuity.

"Ino! Keep your voice down," Sakura yelped, her cheeks growing pink as heads around them turned. "Honestly…why I tell you these things…"

She was certainly glad she hadn't mentioned the affection with which she'd launched herself at Kisame the other night (knowing Ino wouldn't take it as the lighthearted, friendly affection it truly was), or holding hands with Itachi and Deidara (a thought she couldn't have without blushing just a little), or how she had woken up to find herself comfortably situated back in her own bed, stripped of her sweatshirt and tucked in as she had been as a child. _'She'd go ballistic if she knew…'_

"Because if you didn't have me, you'd be clueless as to what they meant," Ino informed her with a cheeky little grin that made Sakura roll her eyes, though it didn't stop her from laughing at her friend's antics.

"Ino, it doesn't mean anything. They're just really nice guys."

"I rest my case," the blonde responded with infuriating superiority and a smug giggle. "You really _would_ be clueless without me."

"Would not!" Sakura contested hotly, sticking her tongue out at the cerulean-eyed girl. "What's your interpretation oh miss wise one?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Ino asked with a sly smile. "They like you."

"_What?!_"

"Wow there, girl, pipe down," the blonde said, chuckling as Sakura slapped a hand over her lips. "And I thought you didn't want to attract any attention."

"Yeah well, you were being ridiculous," Sakura replied a tad sulkily as she removed her fingers from over her mouth to eat and retort.

The blonde shook her head, golden strands of hair sliding over her slim shoulders. "Sakura, I'm going to write that off as you not having known what the guys were like before," Ino said, twirling her fork over and over in her fingers. "Because otherwise, you've got no excuse for being so clueless about the guys around you. Really, girls are supposed to pick up on these things," she teased, taking the sting out of her admonishments.

"Look," she said as Sakura huffed her indignation, "I'll show you a little proof. Who out of the Akatsuki dorm do you think likes you least? Pick someone who isn't already here in the cafeteria with us."

Sakura twisted around in her seat to scan the tables for her housemates, noting which of them had already arrived at their usual place in the lunchroom. Kisame, Itachi, and Deidara were already there, and for a second the memories of the previous night and her kisses with the last two of the trio made her cheeks flush in a way that made Ino grin into her hand.

"Um…probably…probably Zetsu?"

"The guy with the green hair right?" the blonde asked as she, too, scanned the cafeteria's layout. "He usually comes in through the North door doesn't he; the one that connects to the field."

"Yeah…Ino where are you going with this?"

"I'm going to prove to you that even the Akatsuki member whom you think is the least affectionate with you might want to be closer to you than you think. That should at least make you consider the possibility that the others like you, right?"

The rose-haired girl considered. It probably would go a long way towards making her agree to Ino's claim. She spent less time with Zetsu than the majority of her housemates, and even Kakuzu was nicer to her than the quiet, forest-haired teen. To be honest, she wasn't sure if they were really much even in the way of friends. "Yeah, okay. I think I'd find your weird claim more plausible if you could make me think Zetsu might want to get close to me."

_'But there's no way we can prove that, right?'_

"You don't see Zetsu at lunch really often, do you, since you leave early with Naruto and Sasuke most of the time and Zetsu gets here late from his class on the other side of campus, right?" Ino questioned, continuing on when Sakura gave her a confirmation nod, "Well you're going to have to take this one of faith but, when Zetsu usually comes in, he usually walks down the center aisle because that's makes for the shortest distance between the door and the Akatsuki table."

"Makes sense," Sakura said, twisting around in her seat to trace the path with her verdant eyes.

"Well, I think he'll take the left aisle because it'll take him past our table," Ino postulated, tossing Sakura a confident grin.

"That's ridiculous," Sakura laughed. "Zetsu hardly goes out of his way to see me at home; what makes you think he'll do that here?"

The blonde shrugged, a knowing smile gracing her lips. "Call it a hunch."

"Right…whatever you say…"

"Hey Sakura," Ino said, a thought flashing across her devious mind so fast she couldn't even give herself pause to second-guess herself before the words were out of her mouth. "Want to make a little bet out of it?"

The rosy-headed girl raised an eyebrow, suddenly suspicious. "What sort of bet?" she asked warily, having had enough experience with the blonde by now to know trouble when she saw it coming.

"If what I say doesn't come true, I'll dress up as Miss Piggy for Halloween next week," Ino said magnanimously. "I'll even use that prank pig-nose Naruto was carting around yesterday."

"And if what you say _does_ come true?" Sakura asked, wanting to know the catch straight off.

The blonde's azure eyes narrowed slyly, a devious grin curving her plump strawberries-and-champagne glossed lips. "I get to pick your Halloween costume and you have to wear it no matter what."

"Ino…"

"Are you saying you might actually believe me?" Ino goaded, still grinning. "Because you don't seem all that confident…"

"I am!" Sakura told her friend with a huff of indignation. "I'll take your bet!"

"Oh good," Ino replied with a careless laugh, "Because Zetsu's just coming in. Don't turn around!" she added, lightly smacking the other girl's wrist. "If he catches your eye he'll probably think you mean to call him over and he'll come regardless and then I won't have proved anything!"

"Ow, geez, okay you slave driver," Sakura muttered, making a face at her blonde friend. "I hope you have a Miss Piggy costume all prepared."

"Oh? What makes you think I'm going to lose?" Ino asked with another smirk, her eyes trained on Sakura. To be fair, she was avoiding Zetsu's gaze too so that there'd be no way to disparage the outcome of her little test.

"Zetsu never does things inefficiently."

"Such confidence, especially when I think you'll be wrong this time, Sakura-chan."

"I'm not wro-,"

"Hello, Sakura."

The rose-haired girl's cheeks paled as she twisted about in her seat to attempt a smile. "Hey, Zetsu…"

"I was surprised to see you here. You're usually gone by the time I get here."

"Yeah," Sakura laughed uncomfortably. "Ino-chan and I ended up getting caught up in conversation…"

The verdant-haired junior nodded in understanding. "It's good to see you."

"Good to see you too…"

Ino gave her friend a gentle smile as the rose-haired girl turned back to her, iridescent eyes perturbed. "Sakura?"

To Sakura, it felt as though there were enough butterflies in her stomach to make even the most obsessive lepidopterist satisfied. It was hard to take in, Zetsu's actions so different from what she had come to expect from the amber-eyed junior.

"See? It's not as if I don't have reason to think what I do," Ino told her kindly. "Will you believe me now that they might like you, because I know exactly what I want you to wear for Halloween…"

Ino's attempt to cheer up the rose-haired girl seated across from her fell flat as the blood drained from Sakura's face, her lips forming two words that might have expressed either her disbelief of the possibility that her housemates might harbor feelings for her, or her displeasure at the idea of submitting to whatever costume the blonde chose to make her wear for the upcoming holiday, though Ino wasn't certain which.

"No way…"

* * *

**Before you ask!**

No, I'm not going to be putting any NejiSaku into this. Sorry for those of you who are supporters of this pairing, this _is_ strictly AkaSaku (I'm even curbing my considerable KakaSaku tendencies because of it =P) but rest assured that I do like the pairing and may very well write a NejiSaku on that particular vein someday.

A lepidopterist is someone who studies butterflies (if you hadn't guessed XD)

The other record I mentioned up at the beginning of this chapter is the fact that I made sure EVERY Akatsuki dorm member got a moment with Sakura this chapter! I honestly wasn't shooting for it at first…but the Hidan moment just wrote itself…and then the idea for the Zetsu moment at the end hit me…and I'd already had the SasoSaku, KiSaku friendship, and ItaSaku moments planned…and then it was really just sad if I didn't throw in the adorable DeiSaku moment and go a little into Kakuzu's thoughts about Sakura…and voila!

I may someday draw that picture of Sakura asleep between Deidara and Itachi on the roof of Akatsuki dorm…if anyone else wants to do it, please feel welcome ^^ the idea just happened to explode into my head mid-scene...and then I had to write it! I also want to draw it quite avidly...

Edit: so after I finished this all up...I actually made a sketch of several scenes in Belonging and posted them up on my dA (it's under the same name as my fanfiction account but you can just search "belonging" and they should pop up...) or, to be more accurate, two scenes: Sakura's Kisame-nii scene, and Sakura asleep between Dei and Itachi ^^ badly done but if you feel like checking them out, I won't stop you.

**AND IMPORTANT NOTICE!**

Because I have finals next week and will be working my butt off for them, **I will sadly be unable to update Belonging until the Friday of the week after!** I know, I'm sorry! But rest assured that chapter 13, which involves Halloween, will be filled with many cute fluff moments as my heartfelt apology!

And finally, Happy Birthday everyone! Tomorrow, December 5th, is Aria's (that would be me ^^) 21st birthday! I know, she's so old isn't she…no, no, don't run away! Anyway, she hopes you'll have a wonderful day, and please do drop her reviews and cookies and enjoy this gift (a day early because I have to keep on schedule XD) from her to you!


	13. A Night's Enchantments

Yay, it's here folks! The awaited Halloween chapter! Which I'm actually really not too happy with ^^; it could have gone SO much better but I was working hard to get this out around other events happening during this time so...

Congrats to himeko63, your prize is in this chapter! And Congrats to mangamaniacgurl for getting the 300th review award, your prize should show up in chapter 14 or 15! (I can't believe Belonging's already this long! I topped 100+ pages of text on Word today finishing this chapter XD)

So without further ado, except maybe a quick disclaimer to say that I don't own Naruto and such, please read on!

* * *

**Chapter 13: A Night's Enchantments**

"Ino-pig…"

"Yeah?" the blonde replied with a saucy grin, knowing what was coming next.

"_What_ were you thinking?!"

"Oh come on, it's cute!"

"C-cu," Sakura spluttered, unable to come up with an appropriate response as she made motions at the outfit lying on her bed. "_Cute?!_"

"Okay, that might have been an exaggeration. A promise is a promise, Sakura," Ino added, catching sight of the look on Sakura's face. "And come on, I even gave you a coat to go with it so you ought to stop gaping like a landed fish."

The rosy-headed girl flushed darkly, pointing towards the door of her bedroom with a shaking finger. "At least, at the _very_ least, get rid of the guys, Ino-pig," she insisted shakily. "I'm not going downstairs dressed like that with them around to see me."

Ino raised an eyebrow, rolling her shoulder in a nonchalant shrug. "Why not?" she asked, "it's not like they're not going to see you. The Halloween Masque is a school-wide event and they're all going to be there."

"I know," Sakura muttered as she flickered shy eyes at her costume again, "But I don't think I could handle them all at once…one at a time maybe…or in pairs…but not at once."

"And you don't think they'll travel in a pack during the masquerade ball?"

She shook her head. "They didn't when we went on the beach trip before school started, so I don't think they will now."

"If you say so," Ino acquiesced dubiously. "I'll get them to go…but you'd _better_ have that outfit on by the time I get back, got it? I'll force you into it if you're not ready by the time I return."

Sakura's lips quirked wryly as the blonde headed for the door, "I don't doubt it."

=*~*~*=

"Candy-girl's taking forever," Kisame groaned, slouching back in one of the armchairs in the common room. "How long does it take for two girls to get one some dresses?"

The seven male members of Akatsuki dorm were sprawled across the majority of the chamber's furniture, all in various, appropriate Halloween attire. But each face held the same, singularly bored expression.

"If candy-girl doesn't get down here soon, I'm going to-,"

"Shh!" Deidara interrupted, perking up suddenly as he waved a hand in the senior's face to shush the older male. "I hear footsteps!"

The light patter of bare feet on the steps echoed loudly in the boys' ears as they subtly, and some not so subtly, turned to catch a glimpse of their youngest member in the Halloween outfit she had been so secretive about.

"Guys!"

"Oh, hey Ino," Kisame greeted with a wave and a grin as he caught sight of the imperceptible tremor of disappointment that rolled through the group. "Where's our candy-girl? We're late."

"Yeah…and you care because…" Ino laughed and waved a hand in answer as the gill-tattooed male flashed her a shark-like smile. "Sakura's being a little shy about her costume, so do us girls a favor and we'll meet you guys at the party 'kay?"

She raised an eyebrow at the collective chill that rose from the assembled males. "I'm serious," the blonde drawled, her azure eyes growing half-lidded as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You don't go, Sakura doesn't leave her bedroom."

"Then…there is nothing we can do," Itachi said silkily as he rose to his feet in a fluid movement of dark fabric. "Tell Sakura I will see her at the masque." With an elegant swish of onyx silk, he disappeared.

"The fu-,"

"I'm leaving too," Kakuzu announced, cutting across Hidan's vociferous swearing.

And slowly the teens all funneled out of the building until only Kisame was left to apply a little more blue body paint on his forearm with an overly casual air.

"You're not leaving?" Ino asked levelly, arms still crossed.

"Why?" the senior asked with a toothy grin, "I'm not one of the ones who likes Sakura like that."

The blonde raised an eyebrow, thinking wryly that she was beginning to repeat that particular gesture more and more as she spent an increasingly large amount of time with Sakura's housemates. "So you noticed?"

"You'd have to be blind not to notice."

"You're saying Sakura's blind?" Ino quipped with a smile, sauntering over to seat herself across from Kisame in the common room's extra wide couch.

"Candy-girl's…naïve," the blue-skinned senior replied with another grin.

The two exchanged amused glances. They understood each other perfectly; each seeing in the other a formidable ally and fellow mischief-maker. Ino quirked an eyebrow at the older male, a gesture that invited the senior across from her to make a qualifying statement to his previous conjecture.

"She doesn't seem to notice…but she's never had anything to compare their current behavior too, unlike the rest of us."

"You're right," Ino agreed, shaking her golden tresses with a mock sorrowful sigh, her words taking on a long-suffering tone that tinted with suppressed laughter. "I've tried to tell her what they used to be like, but she honestly doesn't believe me! She's really good at rationalizing."

"So what's your angle?" Kisame asked, leaning back carelessly into the armchair, mindless of how the body paint marked up the cream leather seat. "What's in it all for you?"

"That's a serious question," the azure-eyed girl remarked, mimicking the older male's casual pose, "But I suppose you feel entitled; Sakura-chan calls you Kisame-nii nowadays, doesn't she." Her expression reflected her curiosity when Kisame paled noticeably under his face paint. "What?"

"Nothing."

"We'll get back to it," Ino amended firmly, the smirk on her lips easily communicating that she wasn't about to drop the subject so easily. "And just so you know, there isn't really anything in it for me. I do it for the same reason you do: it's fun to watch the guys squirm." _'And I have romantic tendencies.'_ She shook the sudden bored expression of half-lidded chocolate eyes that flashed through her mind from her head with a sharp, mental shake. _'Which really don't need to be thought about here, thanks all the same…'_

"If you watch carefully, the middle and ring fingers of Sasori's left hand twitch when a guy not part of Akatsuki gets too close to Sakura," Kisame said offhandedly, attempting to draw Ino's attention away from his previous pallor at the mention of Sakura's new nickname for him. "It's like he has little threads attached to his fingers and he wants to jerk the guy away from her; it's a nervous tell that he has left over from his childhood claustrophobia."

"Well isn't someone observant."

"Hey, I try."

"Anything else I ought to watch out for?" Ino pressed, mentally taking notes as her inner romantic squealed with glee at the tidbit she'd already garnered.

"Deidara." He chuckled as the girl leveled him with an utterly unamused glare. "He's particularly affectionate around her, but you might have already picked up on that."

"Just a little," the blonde replied with wry humor dancing in her cerulean eyes as she remembered an incident from two days ago, Deidara energetically sweeping up a bright red Sakura into his arms after school as the girl insisted to be let down though the hall was empty of anyone save herself and the two blonds.

"Oh, and-," but Ino never discovered what else Kisame could tell her about the Akatsuki and their various tells, because the conversation's clueless subject rounded the corner, rambling as she tugged the bottom hem of her costume.

"Ne, Ino-chan…can't I _please_ wear something longer? This thing's so short if I wasn't wearing the coat I'd be showing off my ACK! INO!" A loud thud echoed through the room as Sakura, having looked up from her efforts to get the short skirt that fit glove-like around her hips and thighs to cover a little more of her body to discover that she had miscounted earlier when she was watching to make sure that everyone left the house from a third-story window, immediately darted back around the corner and away from Kisame's rather stunned gaze to trip over her own feet and land hard on the portion of her body she'd been trying to cover earlier.

"Ow…"

"She isn't going out like that!"

_'What?'_ Sakura wondered, her ears perking as she got to her feet, gently prodding her abused derriere as she tugged down the skirt again with one hand. An excited thrill shot through her, a bubble of hope rising in her chest. _'Kisame-nii's arguing against the Outfit_ – she was pretty certain the costume deserved the capitalization – _with Ino-pig!'_

"But I'm wearing the same thing, sans coat, and I need the moral support," that was Ino's voice, Sakura registered, the tone a little too coy to fool anyone.

_'Ino only got me into the Outfit because of our bet three days ago!'_

"And won't this make Sakura notice how the guys look at her?"

The rose-haired girl waiting around the corner gaped in utter shock as Kisame's voice floated back to her, rather contemplative, "You know…you might just be right…"

"Not you too!" Sakura wailed, appearing out from behind the wall she'd been standing so silently behind to point an accusing finger at her brother-figure. "I thought only Ino-chan was that crazy!"

The previously arguing pair stared, one surprised once more by the costume that adorned the roseate's body, the other utterly smug at seeing her best friend in the agreed Halloween attire.

Under their combined gaze, Sakura flushed a bright pink as she tugged futilely at the sides of the coat that refused, by dint of the way it had been tailored, to do more than cling becomingly to her sides.

"Guys…" she whined childishly, too far gone in her own, apparel-related misery to care of her juvenile tone.

"You know, Sakura-_chan,_" the older teen drawled with a lopsided grin as his eyes swept the cotton-candy haired girlm "If two people who've rarely had contact with each other hold to the same opinion, you really might want to look into it." Kisame may not have had feelings for the girl that way, but he could still appreciate her appearance.

A rose-pink, rather revealing, utterly impractical version of a medic outfit clung to her, the skirt barely making it halfway down her thighs while the v-neck top plunged down into her surprisingly ample cleavage. A pattern of variously sized sakura in white danced across the bottom hem of the skirt, the top adorned by a large Red Cross symbol on the breast pocket above her heart. Knee-high white boots, sheer stockings, a stethoscope, and a too-small lab coat finished the outfit, Sakura having refused point blank to wear the scrap of a nurse's cap that went along with the scrubs.

"Y'know what, Ino, I've changed my mind. Go drag her with you, this is going to get good."

The devious pair winced as a betrayed cry of "KISAME-NII!" echoed through the house.

"Hey, come on candy-girl, you look cute," the blue-skinned male said as Ino disappeared upstairs to grab her own medic outfit (in lavender). "And it's really not as bad as you seem to think it is."

"Right," the rose-haired girl snapped sarcastically, smoothing the skirt so that the bottom hem was around three inches above her knees, "I'm not going to be comforted by something like that, traitor," she grumbled, though the look she gave him was not angry but long-suffering.

"Oh come on, it's maybe two inches shorter than the school uniform and shows off a little more than the sundresses you wore when we all went to the beach. Stop worrying about it," Kisame replied with a grin as he ruffled the top of Sakura's head, dislodging strands from the already-messy bun that she had pulled her hair into.

"And what are you?" Sakura asked, changing the topic of conversation as she redid her hair with a tongue stuck out at her friend.

"_Isonade_."

"A legendary shark demon?" She could see where it fit. Kisame's skin was painted a pale blue-grey, his spiky, messy, already-blue-tinted hair gelled into something resembling a shark's fin. He was shirtless, dressed in a casual pair of jet-black drawstring pants, his hands and bare feet somehow webbed through the magic of the costume industry. A strange pattern of something akin to gills crisscrossed his upper arms and back.

"Hey, I didn't have too many ideas and the guys on the swim team were pretty forthcoming with this one."

"You sure you didn't just hold a contest for the swim team newcomers and anyone's idea that wasn't picked got double training laps?" she teased, her good humor reasserting itself at Kisame's flippant tone.

"Hey!" the senior mock protested, "I stopped them after they got halfway through the second set. Didn't want them passing out or anything."

"Kisame-nii, you're such a horrible team captain," Sakura groaned, her voice nonetheless tinted with laughter.

"But you-,"

"Ready!" Ino interrupted with a bright smile, and a more scandalous outfit (her shoulders and legs devoid of the coverings a lab coat and stockings provided Sakura over the sleeveless nurse uniform). "Let's get going, shall we? It's your first time attending a Hishin Academy celebration right, Sakura?"

"Yeah," Sakura admitted as she followed her two friends out into the chilly October night.

Kisame's shark-like grin was visible even in the gloom as a sharp crescent of paleness in the dark. "As a guy who doesn't usually care about these kinds of things, I'm telling you now it's amazing."

"It must be pretty impressive then," the rose-haired girl laughed, thinking back to how the interior of Kisame's side of his bedroom was plastered with posters in colors that would have offended a legally blind individual, sharp contrast to the minimalistic décor of Itachi's walls.

"You have no idea," Ino murmured under her breath as the trio quickly traversed the campus between Akatsuki dorm and the main hall.

Hurrying up a flight of steps that wouldn't have looked out of place at the front doors of a palace, they burst into the building in a swirl of chilly air.

"Oooh!" Sakura breathed in awe; "I've never seen the hall so lovely!"

Before her, the place was lit like the inside of a jack o' lantern, flickering candlelight dancing from the wall sconces. Monochrome drapes of ghostly white and dark ebony slashed across the high vaulted windows, letting the night's aura filter through the glass panes. From her vantage point at one of the two balconies on either end of the hall, the glittering pattern of costumed students moved around and around like the parts of a very intricate dance.

A sudden desire welled up in her to be standing their in a gown as people below whirled in time to a waltz.

_'Right, no. This is Halloween, not some Regency romance novel,'_ she chided herself gently as she followed the other two, realizing with a tiny jolt of regret that, having no idea what the others looked like, she had no idea if she would find them. _'Then again, do I really want them to see me dressed like this?'_ A tiny laugh bubbled up from her lips as she followed her friends into the crowd.

=*~*~*=

_Ring!_

"What now," Jiraiya grumbled, putting a final knot into the tie holding the vest of his costume in place. Dressed as the Toad Sage from history and legend, he was a little weighed down by his outfit to comfortably reach the incessantly ringing phone atop his desk, but with a little effort he managed and brought the receiver to his ear. "Hello?"

"Jiraiya…"

He stiffened in surprise, warmth suffusing his features as he slowly slid into his seat, the Halloween party going on in the next building momentarily forgotten. "Tsunade-hime. This is…unexpected."

"You're takin' good care of Sakura-chan, right?" the bossy blonde demanded, her voice strident over the phone. "She's getting too retirin' around guys…glad she's around Naruto and 'Suke again…"

"Y-yeah, she seems to be doing alright," Jiraiya reassured the woman on the other end of the line.

"Good, good…hey. I wanted t'let you know…Shizune's going to be visiting Sakura in a week or so," Tsunade slurred. "I'll be calling Sakura 'bout it later but th' newsletter said I needed Administrative Permission," she added, putting unnecessary capitalization into the words.

"That's fine, Tsunade-hime," Jiraiya heard himself say, feeling strangely nervous as he spoke. "I guess I'll see Shizune-,"

"Oi! Tsunade! Are you going to do a toast or not!"

_'Wait…what?'_

"Hospital Hall'ween party," the woman explained with a completely age-incongruous giggle.

"Tsunade-hime…you're drunk…go give your toast and get yourself home," he chuckled as she agreed drunkenly and severed their connection.

Greeted by the dial tone, he sighed. At least she was drunk dialing _him _and not someone else. It meant she was thinking about him, right? Reassured by that rationalization, he hefted the gigantic scroll on his back, slipped his feet into a pair of geta, and was headed out the door again when…

_Ring!_

"Again?" he growled, swinging back with half a mind to just ditch the call as he jerked the phone to him. "Hello?"

"Jiraiya-san."

"Oh, hello Pein, what is it?"

"Konan wished to say goodbye to you, she's leaving early to get back to an essay she hasn't finished yet."

"Ah, okay…"

"I will be attending Hishin's Halloween Masque; I do not need to be a student to do so, isn't that correct?"

_'What?'_

Jiraiya's eyes widened at the left field question. _'When'd Pein decide to do this?'_ "Uh…you do need to be a student but as you're applying for our next term, you're permitted…"

"Thank you, Jiraiya-san."

And then he was hanging up, just like Tsunade did. Without saying goodbye.

"Would it kill either of you to say a few parting words?" Jiraiya griped as he shuffled out of the Headmaster's office quickly to avoid getting caught by another phone call. He had a Halloween party to attend, and it looked as if this year would be more interesting than the last.

_'Maybe I'll get a chance to find out just what Pein finds so interesting here at Hishin…'_

=*~*~*=

"This is boring," Deidara whined, making a face at the pair of seniors that Kisame always called the Zombie Brothers around Halloween. It was a fitting moniker since they had the same theme to their outfits every single year.

Kakuzu's costume this year consisted of a ragged pair of navy jeans and a particularly tattered t-shirt with frighteningly realistic splatters of blood and dirt that obscured the design underneath so completely as to make it unrecognizable. His skin was paler than its normal tan in a number of places, smudged with baby powder and some green, shimmering thing (Deidara didn't want to consider that it might have been eyeshadow…the only eyeshadow available to them residing in the small makeup case Sakura kept under her bed) to make his skin seem fetid and rotting. Removable tattoos of deep gouges decorated his neck and upper arms, dark lines crawling over his face and any other bared skin with clearly drawn in stitches.

Hidan, on the other hand, was surprisingly not the least covered member of the Akatsuki in a tattered robe of obsidian fabric, his skin marked by bone-white representations of a skeleton over jet black body paint, hefting a gigantic, three-bladed scythe over his shoulder. He, too, was barefoot, his usually slicked-back silver hair messy for once in a windswept, flyaway appearance. Crimson tipped the ends of his hair, dripping wetly against his shoulders and making gruesome rivulets down his front to soak in tiny droplets in the waistband of his gym sweats.

"Where's Sakura?"

Kakuzu shrugged unconcernedly, though his luminescent eyes told a different story as they flickered from student to student in a fruitless search for the girl they'd all been looking for since leaving the house, Ino's words about Sakura's shy feelings towards her outfit sparking a rather thoughtful undercurrent to the boys' musings. Unfortunately, with the holiday they were celebrating, a large majority of the people decorating the hall's interior with their costumes werewearing wigs, and Sakura could possibly be among their number. If she wasn't, she was also not the only pinkette in the room; he could count at least fifteen other rosy-headed individuals from a cursory scan alone.

The blond rolled his eyes and shook his head at the silence of the more serious of the two seniors, the usually loud-mouthed Hidan strangely preoccupied as he stared at the buckets in one corner of the room reserved for apple bobbing. "Alright, I'm going to go get some fresh air, it's roasting in here. See you two later." Heaving another sigh at the zombie brothers' overbearing silence, he slipped free of the crowd and headed out to the chilly darkness of the October night, nearly bumping into an orange-haired individual dressed almost entirely in black as he exited the hall.

"This is retarded…why didn't Sakura just let us stay? We could have all gone to the masque together," Deidara muttered, grinding his knuckles into his forehead in annoyance, brushing the fringe dropping in front of his left eye aside with mild irritation. "Sakura…"

"Yes?"

Jumping in surprise, he whirled around…and froze.

_'_Wh-what_ is she wearing??'_ his stunned mind stuttered, stalling as he took in her breathtaking appearance. Azure eyes swept her curvaceous form, accented by the medic outfit she had one. The low-cut top showed a tantalizing view of the gentle swell of her breasts, pushing the globes that probably every male in Akatsuki dorm had fixated about at one time or another together in a way that made Deidara's head spin. It felt like hours before he could tear his eyes away to slowly sweep down the slender curve of her waist to the short hem of her skirt…her thighs distractingly covered by the white lab coat that clung to her body. The light from behind her accented the sheen of the uncovered portions of her legs, making him realize they were clad in silken stockings.

The lighting kept him from clearly making out Sakura's face, but it left nothing of his to the imagination for the girl standing in the doorway.

Her heart thudded in a harsh staccato as she caught sight of the awe and surprise and _heat_ displayed so prominently in his face. She felt shy and yet also like she'd had something very fizzy to drink, bubbles of nervousness rising inside her as she stepped towards the blond. "D-Dei?"

"S-Saku-Sakura," the junior stuttered, not entirely certain what he would do with the girl who neared him, a strange juxtaposition of innocence wrapped in the most revealing outfit he had ever seen her in.

"Deidara…what…"

Her hand tangled in his hair, the golden length unbound and brushing his back, as he tugged her forward into a breathless embrace as he pinched the bridge of his nose to keep an explosive nosebleed at bay. "You're just too cute," he muttered into her throat, his words hampered by the stethoscope around her neck that brushed against his lips. "I can't believe you're wearing something like that."

"Ino made me," the girl in his arms grumbled, clueless as to the struggle the male was having to keep from leaving little nips down the side of her neck. "I'd have gone with something…well, something else at any rate."

"Thank goodness she did," Deidara murmured huskily, finally able to peel his fingers off his nose as the imminent threat of nosebleed passed. "Thank goodness."

"Yeah, well, I have to go back or Ino-chan's going to wonder what's happened…I told her I was going to the bathroom…"

"Stay."

"Huh?"

"Stay," he repeated, still holding her as his warm breath feathered across her cool skin, unconscious of how Sakura's face swiftly went hot, matching the shade of her outfit and hair in her heart-pounding embarrassment. She pulled back slightly, though only to get a better look at his face, "Deidara, I…"

"Sakura-chan! Where. Are. You!!"

The girl in question jumped, the end of the stethoscope hitting Deidara squarely on the nose as she whirled around, going from bright red to pale in seconds. "S-sorry!" she apologized quickly, not even realizing she'd hit the other boy, "If Ino sees us like this she'll have a field day and I-I'm…" she blushed, not sure where she'd been going with that sentence, turning on her heel and fleeing before Deidara had a chance to say a word.

Clutching his abused and now truly bleeding nose, from the stethoscope hit or perhaps the sight of the lab coat flapping in the wind that left him with an unobstructed view of her toned derriere confined within the skin-tight skirt he wasn't sure, Deidara made a pout, dripping blood onto his pyromancer costume, the fireworks he's stowed up his sleeve threatening to pour out onto the ground. Ino had a terrible knack for ruining great moments between himself and the rose-haired sixteen-year-old he loved…

_'Wait…_what?!_'_ he asked himself, his ears growing hot as shock gripped his system, blood from his nose now flowing unchecked as he analyzed his feelings. _'I…I _love_ her?'_ a warm thrill of happiness coiling around his insides as a gentle smile curved his lips, his sleeve coming up to unconcernedly wipe away the blood from his face. _'I love her…'_

A bubble of laughter escaped him as azure eyes reflected the stars overhead. "I love…Sakura…"

=*~*~*=

"She's disappeared off again," Ino grumbled to the blue-skinned senior, now completely devoid of the timidity she'd shown to him on their first meeting. "Honestly, _why_ does she keep running off?"

"I don't know," Kisame quipped with a wry grin, "Maybe it's because someone almost grabbed her butt when we first walked in and now she's shy?"

"You almost beat the guy into a bloody pulp," Ino pointed out, sparing a moment to give him a bland glance before turning back to scan the crowd for a single pink-haired medic.

"Yeah well, you don't touch Sakura around any of us Akatsuki members," the senior retorted proudly, flashing her a sharp-toothed grin.

"Is that right, _Kisame-nii_?" the blonde taunted, smirking at the sudden pallor that developed under the older male's face paint. "What _is_ it about that name that bothers you so much?"

"Ish Itahmmm prmmrm nihinm," he replied, cramming his mouth with chocolate candies, giving Ino a smirk of his own when she glared at his indistinct response.

"Bore. Fine," she snapped with mock-irritation, "I'll just tell Sakura that you're not comfortable with the nickname then, shall I?"

The gill-tattooed senior winced. "Damn it woman, that's not playing fair."

"Fair…fair…yeah, not in my vocabulary," Ino replied, smirk evident on her feminine features. "Spill."

"You tell anyone, you die," Kisame threatened, his glare frightening a gaggle of pastel-dressed freshmen behind the blonde who merely leveled a fierce glare of her own at him with an even nod to communicate that she would keep her lips sealed.

And with no more excuses, Kisame gritted his teeth and muttered, "Itachi knew Sakura once."

"What?" Ino's eyes were narrowed and suspicious, bristling in the confines of her lavender-shaded nurse's outfit so that she appeared less like a come-hither type health worker and more like a battle-hardened valkyrie on a blood-soaked field. Or…at least one that would be soaked with blood really soon if things weren't explained to her post haste.

"Itachi," Kisame enunciated with painful, condescending clarity, "and Sakura. Were friends. Back when they were little."

"_What?_"

"Honestly blondie, this is getting annoying," the shark-demon dressed senior told her, rolling his eyes. "Sakura's best friends with Naruto and Sasuke, and Sasuke and Itachi are brothers, so what part of all that is so hard to-,"

"I _get_ it," Ino interrupted with a huff, "But wait…so…so let me get this straight…Sakura is best friends with Uzumaki Naruto and _Uchiha_ Sasuke…but she doesn't seem to remember _Uchiha_ Itachi at all."

"That's the gist of it."

"…How does that have _anything_ to do with the whole Kisame-nii thing?"

"One time…a couple of years ago when Itachi ended up running a really high fever, he talked like a chatterbox and…" Kisame shrugged, his voice growing so quiet that Ino had to strain to here him talk, "when they were little, Sakura used to call him…'Tachi-nii."

"_What?!_"

"Geez, woman! Add to your vocabu-,"

"Yeah, yeah," Ino shushed him hurriedly, too excited to care about what he was going on about. "That's adorable! But…oh! She doesn't remember him so she calls him Itachi, and she calls you Kisame-nii, and," she broke out in giggles, "that terrifies you!"

"Oi!" Kisame growled, fully irritated by her sudden laughter. "You didn't see the look on his face the first time she called me that…"

"Scary?"

"Have you seen Itachi pissed before?"

"No."

"Seen Sasuke pissed before?"

"No…"

"Then…take the scariest guy you know and multiply the scary factor by about a thousand and maybe you'll be able to imagine the terror."

Ino shuddered. "Okay, so maybe you've got a reason to be scared. He's jealous?"

Kisame rolled his eyes. "What do you think?"

They stood around in silence, munching on Halloween candy they'd picked up at the various dessert tables lining one end of the hall, each contemplating his or her own thoughts until…

"He likes her?"

The shark-like male sighed, leaning against the cool wall at their backs. "Itachi's been Sakura's friend since they were five or six years old, and then something happened and she went to an all-girls school when she turned ten. Now she doesn't seem to remember him at all. It's a little tough on a guy. But yeah, I'm pretty sure he likes her."

"He's not going to get pissed that you're spilling all of this to one of Sakura's friends?"

Kisame shrugged, obviously rather irritated himself. "I doubt you'll say anything, and even if you did…Sakura's _really_ good at rationalizing, if you hadn't noticed."

Ino groaned as she crammed a slice of candied orange into her mouth. "No kidding…"

She didn't see lazy, half-hooded eyes watching her movements with something akin to jealousy lighting their dark, chocolate depths.

=*~*~*=

"Oh!"

Pein hadn't been expecting to hear the soft, girlish voice that sounded behind him that evening, and the unexpected warmth that filled him, filtering with his mild surprise, brought a tiny upturned curve to his lips. "Hello."

"Hi," the roseate-haired girl greeted, flushing a dark crimson when his eyes swept her scantily clad form. "I…never got to thank you."

"For?" he asked, making his way to her through the semi-dark hallway that ran along the side of the main hall nearest the administration building. It was here that there were powder rooms and bathrooms and stairs leading up to a glass-windowed balcony filled with lighting equipment for the hall, and it was gratifying to discover that they were the only two there.

"For…for your jacket," Sakura responded, tugging the sides of her lab coat vainly for the billionth time that night. "I," she laughed a little tiredly, "I wish I had it right now…"

Suddenly realizing how that might have sounded to him, the thought aided by the orange-haired male's surprisingly predatory smile, she spluttered and hastily tried to explain. "To return it to you! Your jacket! Oh god I should just stop…"

A low chuckle echoed through the corridor. "I will probably see you again. I am enrolling in Hishin next semester, so perhaps then?"

"O-oh…of…of course," Sakura stammered.

"If that's settled…you know," the older male murmured, having come so close to her without her realization that Sakura was momentarily stunned to find he had all but backed her against the wall, "there's something I'd like…"

_'Damn Ino's bet!'_ Sakura's mind wailed as the orange-haired guy closed in on her. _'I'm not some piece of _meat!_'_

He caught her flailing fist in one hand before it slammed into his face. "Are you so unwilling to tell me your name?"

Crimson suffused her already red face as she took in his words. She'd taken his advance for…well…an _overture_ – she wrinkled her nose at the word – and he'd merely been asking for her name. She just couldn't help that his vampire costume put her in mind of things like that. Darn her recent reading material and overly active imagination…

"Sakura," she told him softly, trying to quell her blush. "My name is Sakura."

"I am Pein," he informed her with a smile that wasn't completely reassuring, the curve of his lips taking on an almost sinister cast that was perfectly in line with the tailored suit that he wore, the inky darkness of his clothing broken by the stark paleness of the collared shirt he had on underneath…and the blood red tie at his throat. His various piercings glittered in the gloom.

"Tell me," he said, his voice breaking through Sakura's consternation as her thoughts drifted to the slightly menacing aura that floated around him, "what dorm are you part of?"

"Akatsuki," Sakura replied without a thought, still backed against the wall with Pein before her, strangely unperturbed by his presence as she went into informative-mode. "But I know both Oto and Suna dorms are low on people too. They're actually larger than Akatsuki dorm; we have fewer rooms so we could probably take in…two more people at most? Not that many people transfer mid-year, but you're really not very conventional are you…"

She cursed the fact that nervousness made her ramble.

"Very unconventional," Pein agreed with a dark smile as he leaned forward to – perhaps? – capture the lips of the stunned girl before him…a girl he had just learned the name of and barely knew.

"Wait!"

A resounding smack sounded through the deserted hall as she shoved him away from her, the sound of her palms against the fabric of his shirtfront loud in the empty hallway. Oppressive silence descended as she stared at her hands, then him, then her hands again, her cheeks growing darker and darker crimson until she looked as red as a ripe cheery.

"I'm just…going to get some…um…air…" Without a backward glance, she fled, too embarrassed to let herself turn and catch a last look at Pein. She missed the warm heat in his eyes as they followed her disappearing form.

"Sakura…"

=*~*~*=

"Eep!"

Sakura jammed a hand to her mouth to stifle the scream that threatened, quickly registering that the black-garbed figure who had grabbed her the moment she'd exited the main hall was, in fact, one of her housemates. The frigid air of a late October evening was icy against her bare skin as she swallowed another yelp of surprise as she and her sudden captor hurtled through the air, landing surprisingly lightly in the grass from their fall from the outer balcony that led to the main hall doors, a distance of six or seven feet.

"Itachi!"

His cloak draped over her body, the fabric keeping her somewhat warm as the artificial light of the Halloween masquerade ball gleaming off the ivory mask that covered parts of his face in a way that made her clench a hand into a fist to slow her pounding heart.

"Why are you wearing that."

_'Uh oh…another Uchiha non-question…'_ He was most likely somewhat pissed; Sasuke only asked non-questions when he was irritated, and she was pretty sure Itachi was the same way. _'Time to bring out the excuse Ino used on Kisame-nii…'_ "Ino wanted moral support because she's always wanted to wear a nurse outfit on Halloween…"

The soft noise Itachi made as she extricated herself from his grasp said volumes about just how much he believed her flimsy excuse, and she colored at being so easily found out in her lie.

"Ano…"

With a sharp jerk, Itachi pulled the cloak loose from around his neck, the fabric billowing in the cold wind as he draped it over her shoulders. He tugged the sides together so that she stood before him dressed entirely in a jet-black opera cloak, covered from neck to ground.

"Wear this."

"Th-thanks?" She was utterly bewildered, thankful for the covering garment but completely surprised by Itachi's suddenly antisocial reaction towards her. He hadn't behaved this coldly since her first day of classes more than a month ago…and to be honest, it hurt.

But if he seemed similarly affected, she didn't notice.

"I can see why you wanted us to leave before you came downstairs."

"Y-yeah, Ino talked me into it," Sakura said, holding onto the sides of the cloak tightly to keep herself warm and covered in the chilly night. "I'm not really a…dress up kind of girl."

"It looks…" he trailed off, dark eyes flickering away from her under the mask that kept his features hidden. "Borrow my cloak. I should be fine without it."

"Yes, as long as you've got the mask on, no one will mistake you for a vam – for anything other than the Phantom of the Opera," she corrected herself, her words not going unnoticed by the stoic Uchiha before her.

Under the moonlight she was lovely, wrapped in his cloak lined red on the inside and jet-black without, the dim lighting turning her pale rose nurse outfit into what could have been a delectable gown. With her hair falling out of the messy bun, she was an ethereal beauty watching him with doe-like eyes of palest moss.

"Go back inside," he ordered, cursing the brusqueness he used to cover up the sudden onslaught of gentle feeling that the girl before him brought to the surface when those sea-foam eyes of hers welled up with hurt that she tried to hide. "It's cold."

"Yeah…here," she replied, tugging at the ties of the cloak that he had fastened around her throat. "I need to get back to Ino-chan and Kisame-nii…" she didn't notice the way Itachi tensed as she used her new nickname for the gill-tattooed senior, continuing, "Kisame-nii's really…different. He was arguing against Ino having me go to the Halloween Masque dressed like this…kind of like you…you're both really not like how I expected guys to be. You know…all…" she blushed, "you know… It's really something I like about you and Kisame-nhh!"

Her words died away as she was suddenly and abruptly shoved back against the wide tree trunk of a nearby oak, the eyes of the Uchiha pressed flush against her glittering almost crimson in the darkness.

"Don't think," he whispered darkly in her ear, his lips just barely brushing the suddenly hypersensitive flesh, "that because I want you covered up, I do not find you desirable," he told her. "Never think that."

"I-Itachi?" she gasped, a thrill of mingled fear and excitement lancing through her body as he pressed her back into the oak's rough bark until the trunk dug into her back, catching the fabric of his cloak around her.

Warm breath feathered at her throat, putting her in mind of vampires once more. But the lips that rested near the ivory column of her neck did little more than ghost softly down from the shell of her ear to the juncture of her neck and shoulder, the arms that caged her bringing gentle hands to play in her hair and clasp the curve of her waist.

"Sakura…"

She was breathless, uncertain of just what was happening…for the third time that night no less. Whether from the strange magic of Halloween night or the outfit she wore at Ino's insistence, she could only shiver in the circle of Itachi's arms as he wove seduction around her like a dark veil.

And then his lips were back – had they paused just momentarily longer than necessary over the pulse at her jugular? – making their way to the curve of her jaw, to her lips…

And then at the last moment changing course to lay a chaste kiss on her forehead that left her too stunned to notice that the lips that did the deed trembled with the effort of restraint.

"Go home, Sakura," Itachi ordered huskily, fighting to draw back from the girl he had so intimately pressed to a tree outside the Halloween masque's main hall as his voice developed the barest tint of a plea. "Please, Sakura."

She clung to him for long moments, vainly trying to unclench hands that had fisted into the front of his crisp, white, collared shirt. Finally, they let go of his shirt, to drift upward and gently tug the mask from his sharp, masculine features. "I…"

"Go."

And normally, she would have bridled at the order…but she couldn't with her mind so confused from his earlier assault on her senses. Swallowing hard, she nodded, a note of startled loss escaping her as Itachi pulled away. "I'm…I'm going to let Ino and Kisame-nii know I'm headed home…"

She disappeared back into the bright lights of the hall as Itachi pressed bare hands into the tree trunk until the bark cut into his flesh. "Not like that," he hissed at no one in particular, angry at his sudden weakness earlier when he had almost stolen another kiss from Sakura without her permission. "Not like that…I will not take from my Sakura like that."

_'My Sakura…'_

=*~*~*=

"Ow! Teme…"

"Shut it, dobe, Ino just called to say Sakura decided to head back with some of the Akatsuki. We need to get out _now._"

"Still no need to shove, Sasuke-teme," Naruto muttered as he disentangled himself from the prickly painful grasp of the bush he'd fallen into in the mad scramble the call from Ino had produced. "This…should be phase three, right?"

"If we're keeping count," Sasuke muttered as the two sixteen-year-olds slipped into the inky night.

* * *

I...made Deidara admit he loves Sakura...must now balance that out with an equally fluffy ItaSaku scene somewhere down the line soon...also, good luck to Belonging's 350th review winner hopefuls! I have some pretty nifty ideas I want to utilize as the prize!

The ItaSakuDei muse thrives on cookies and reviews, so please feed her lots of both!


	14. Sugar Iced Memories

I'm uploading on my usual schedule of Fridays again! There's just an added bonus that this one happens to be Christmas! So now that it's past midnight and officially Christmas (EST even if I live in PST and am currently somewhere that's about 17 ahead ^^...) on with the story!

All disclaimers apply; I definitely don't own the rights to any of the candies mentioned below, or Naruto and the characters and such.

* * *

**Chapter 14: Sugar-Iced Memories**

"Itai…" Sakura moaned, trying to burrow deeper into her sheets at the pain of needles made of sunlight piercing her eyelids.

"Gwithng!"

She was freezing to death! Somehow, she must have gotten tangled into the sheets and crawled out from under the covers because her body felt stiff and icy and she had no recollection of just how she'd gotten to bed in the first place…

It was cold. And the sun was painful. She was getting up. …Any minute now…

With a sigh, Sakura rolled to one side, fully expecting there to be more to her bed, and nearly tumbled off with a shriek that didn't wake the entire house only because her face was mashed into her down blanket as she grabbed at anything to not be greeted first thing in the morning by her bedroom floor.

A flailing foot sank into _something_ with a rustle of cellophane.

"Huh?"

Performing an impressive feat of flexibility, she twisted her head around and gasped, letting go of the sheets as she slid down to the floor, at the sight of all the _candy_ that littered her bedside. Sitting in between a pile of Starbursts and another of Warheads with her feet scattering Reese's peanut butter cups and assorted butterscotch candies, Sakura stared at the sweets all around her, a tiny frown of confusion forming at her forehead.

"Where…did these come from?"

And why were the memories from last night so _hazy??_

"What…" she glanced down at her attire, did a double take, and finished her sentence at a yelp, "the heck! Why am I wearing next to nothing?!"

This time, her scream did manage to wake a few people downstairs, male bodies shifting in their beds in mingled confusion and slowly awakening amusement, smug grins sliding over masculine features.

Upstairs, Haruno Sakura struggled out of her thigh-high stockings and hurriedly put on some pajama pants (printed with happy-faced clouds that didn't actually reflect her current mood at all), growling with annoyance as she forced herself to remember what had happened the night before.

=*~*~*=

Halloween Night

"Honestly, I can get home by myself," Sakura protested, though Ino leveled her with a disbelieving look. "Really!"

"Sakura…I think you're just trying to get out of having to tell me why you appearing in a cloak sent Kisame running…especially since _you_ won't tell me whose cloak it is!" the blonde replied with a triumphant smirk as a hot blush darkened Sakura's cheeks. "I knew it. Well fine. Go on home, I'll grill it out of you later, just see if I don't."

"Please don't," Sakura laughed worriedly, "The last time you tried to get something out of me I seriously pondered whether or not someone could die of drowning from ingesting too much jello." And, with a last wave of reassurance, Sakura quickly sped off through the crowd into the night.

The late autumn air was cool, with the nip of winter in it that made her hurry quickly through the fluorescently lit campus to the dorm building that she'd come to think of as home. It was comforting, though how a house shrouded in leafless trees whose branches grasped like clawing hands with every gust of wind that blew by could be comforting was a mystery, to be headed away from the loud, oppressive party to the relative peacefulness of her deserted house. Fishing her keys out of one of the lab coat's miniscule pockets – how she'd gotten them to fit in there in the first place was truly beyond her – she shoved the correct one into the lock with hands that shivered from the growing cold, and hurried inside.

"Mmmmmm," Sakura groaned appreciatively as she slid the cloak from her shoulders and locked the front door behind her, "Warm…"

Sleepiness assailed her as she peeled off the knee-high white boots, leaving them carelessly discarded in the shoe rack by the door. Then, in her stocking-clad feet, she walked through the house, lighting a fluorescent trail from the front door to the common room where she plopped onto the long couch, still fiddling with Itachi's cloak.

Shrugging out of her lab coat and placing it over the back of the couch, she leaned down on the sofa lengthwise and sighed in contentment, "There really is no place like home…"

Kisame, on the other hand, was far from the same contentment Sakura was feeling as he faced off against Itachi in the night gloom. "You sent her home?" he asked with a curious tilt of his eyebrows. "Why?"

"It was getting late."

"Bullshit," the senior retorted, crossing his arms over his chest. "Do me a favor by not lying and tell me what the hell you were up to."

"She was dressed like that," Itachi replied, surprising himself and Kisame with the strangely sullen note that crept into his usually even tone.

"Possessiveness is an ugly thing," Kisame quipped, grinning when his roommate corrected him with a quiet, "It's jealousy, not possessiveness, Kisame."

"Possessiveness, jealousy, you have both," the shark-featured senior said as he glanced back towards the brightly lit hall. "So what now? Smart person that you are, you sent her back home without any candy. I thought you'd remember she liked sweets…crap."

The iciness of Itachi's glare was biting at the implication that he would forget something of the sort.

'_Still touchy about things like that, ne?'_ Kisame mused with a worried grin as he raised his hands in an attempt to diffuse the older Uchiha's ire. "Sorry, sorry, I know you're pissed off about Kisame-nii thing…probably wasn't the best joke to make…" _'Any implication that you aren't the highest authority on all things Sakura related isn't the best joke to make…'_

"I'm bringing her candy when I go home," the younger male's words cut into Kisame's personal thoughts. "Kit-kats and Starbursts, her favorites."

"Alright, alright, but let's go home quickly, ne?" the blue-skinned senior muttered as the two headed back inside. "We probably shouldn't let the kid be home alone on a night where pranks are rampant on campus."

The elder Uchiha's lips curled into the ghost of a smirk. "Kisame, you really are a mother hen."

"Where are you two headed, yeah?" interrupted Kisame's opening tirade at insults Itachi could and couldn't make in conjuncture with himself, the blond speaker flanked by the zombie brothers he had ditched earlier that evening.

"Home," Itachi replied shortly, dark obsidian eyes emotionless as they slid across the two seniors and focused on the blond dressed in a crimson and orange shirt, the bottom hem of which lay in tatters around his waist to accent the sable pants he wore. Over the outfit was a blood-red robe edged with gold, complete with a hood that was now pulled up over Deidara's pale gold hair. "Pyromancer?"

"Yeah," the blond drawled, glancing to Itachi. "Where did your cloak go?"

The dark-haired Uchiha shrugged as the last members of their house, Sasori and Zetsu, appeared through the crowd.

"Itachi and Kisame are headed home," Deidara announced to the others. "Has anyone seen Sakura?"

Silence, filled with an undertone of mutter that originated from the crowd that shuffled in the background in garish Halloween costumes, ballooned between the seven males until, "Sakura went home so we're fetching her some extra candy and heading back ourselves," Kisame announced, and left it at that.

Without the need for spoken agreement, the boys dispersed into the crowd to pick sweets they thought the single female member of their dormitory would like from the bowls of candies stashed all over the place as well as any prize goodies they'd picked up from the booths at one corner of the hall. And a quarter of an hour later, they assembled in the vestibule.

"Alright, let's get going, yeah?" the blond urged, and they hurried through the frigid night back to their dorm, laden with sweets.

"Warheads? What makes you think she'd like those, yeah?" he piped up all of a sudden when they were not halfway to the house, digging through his roommate's candy offering.

Heads turned in curiosity as Sasori leveled the garrulous blond with a fierce look of annoyance. "Warheads are sour and sweet; the taste contrast accentuates the individual flavors."

"Yeah…but you have no idea if she likes sour stuff," Deidara pointed out. "You should have gotten her something all sweet like peanut butter cups and Snickers. Don't all girls like chocolate?"

"Maybe, but not all girls like peanut butter," Zetsu interjected, surprising the others with his uncharacteristic forwardness. "I thought she would prefer butterscotch candies."

"Nah, I think those would be overly sweet," Kisame spoke up, voicing his own opinion. "And maybe too buttery. Gummy worms are a better idea."

"Bait for a fish," Kakuzu commented with a thin smile.

"Shut it," the gill-tattooed senior snarked, his responding grin a crescent of mischief. "You got her SweetTarts. Figures you'd get the cheapest thing there, you miser. We didn't even have to pay for the candy and you still picked out something budget priced."

"That had nothing to do with it. Sakura likes SweetTarts."

Five pairs of eyes flickered to the stoic miser, the sixth, and the pair belonging to Kisame, darting to glance at Itachi. The seventeen-year-old Uchiha seemed to radiate coldness like a block of dry ice, burning frigidity to rival the October chill.

"How can you tell?" the Uchiha asked quietly, his soft voice carrying through the night as it rang with a tone as hard as katana steel.

Kakuzu shrugged. "That'll be three ryo."

"Kakuzu."

The senior flashed a rare, sharp smile. "I saw a handful of them lying on the shelf in her locker when I picked her up yesterday and made a conjecture."

His statement was greeted by silence, then, "The _hell_ sort of conjecture was that?" Hidan scowled, pulling out the key to their house and letting everyone in. "That hardly makes any damn sense."

"And yet you wonder why I call you an idiot," Kakuzu replied silkily, pushing past the silver-haired senior.

Charging after his roommate to give the verdant-eyed male an angry retort, the words died on Hidan's lips as he turned into the common room Kakuzu had disappeared into and took in the sight before them.

"Holy _shit._"

Sakura had fallen asleep on the couch, Itachi's cloak pooled across the floor where it had fallen from her fingers as she lay, her breathing deep and even, on her back. The skirt of her nurse outfit was hiked up higher than before, having been mussed when she bonelessly collapsed into the sofa earlier that evening, revealing to the world and all the males who had come up behind the silently stunned pair of seniors that her stockings were thigh-highs, complete with chocolate-hued ribbons on the sides of the bands that held the sheer things clasped around her creamy legs. The lab coat lay open, revealing her bare shoulders as the rise and fall of her chest with every breath she took drew their eyes to the curvaceous figure she usually hid beneath slightly large pajamas and her school uniform jacket.

Beautiful and seductive and all the more so of both in sleep, she shifted as if she felt their combined gazes, rolling onto her side to give them a better view of her face. Rosy strands of hair tickled her cheeks, falling out of the confining hair band she'd used to hold them back. A stray lock slid down her shoulder, across her collarbone, and the seven males watched with varied levels of interest as the rose-blush hair slithered across pale skin, their eyes following its path as the strands came to rest at the dip of her cleavage.

"Holy shit…" Hidan repeated, his tone bordering on reverent.

The softly spoken words broke the spell and Sakura woke with a start.

"Hi-Hidan?" she yawned sleepily, focusing on the voice she had heard as she unsuccessfully tried to blink the sleep from her eyes. "Everyone…" Her eyes finally cleared as she took in their surprised faces, and like a bucket of ice water being poured down her back, she remembered just how she was dressed. With a shriek of pure, unadulterated horror, she shot up out of the couch and disappeared over the back of it, gone out of sight before any of them had a chance to say a word.

"Uh…"

"Yeah…"

Unlike the monosyllabic words consisting of the majority of the conversation downstairs, Sakura's mind was scrolling through as many insults as she could think of as she sprinted to her room, her face flaming with embarrassment.

They had seen her! In the Outfit! Would she ever live it down?

Her experience with guys her age had consisted of the little she garnered from her female friends at her previous school and the chance meetings she had with guys around the town she'd been living in and thus, was a little skewed. With her guy-shyness that was, thankfully, growing less with each passing day, the only way she could react to their looks had been with a sort of terrified embarrassment.

Now, with two stories and the same number of staircases between them, she had a chance to calm down and breathe.

"Silly," she muttered angrily to herself, "_Why_ did I freak out like that? Why'd I agree to wearing that Outfit…oh geez…" Pushing the door to her room open without preamble, she stripped off the nurse outfit and groped for her Akatsuki shirt as a wave of sleepiness hit her like a sledgehammer. Knowing full well that she was making a bad decision, she collapsed on top of her bed with the intention to get up in seconds…she couldn't just be lazing in bed in a shirt and her thigh-highs that she had purchased on her most recent trip to Bellflower Square with Ino after insisting that she _couldn't_ wear the Outfit without any stockings underneath…

Her eyelashes fluttered as sleep pulled her into darkness.

At about the same moment that Sakura fell asleep, the boys downstairs decided that she was taking more than enough time changing into her pajamas and, showing more solidarity than usual, agreed to visit her bedroom en masse with the candy they'd gathered for her that night. Of course, their impatience had nothing to do with an argument having broken out about just which kind of candy she liked best.

Nothing. Really.

So, the seven Akatsuki males made their way up to the third floor, Deidara and Hidan still squabbling over whose candy would be preferred, only to stop in surprise when Sakura wouldn't answer her door.

"Oi, candy-girl," Kisame called, rapping his knuckles with surprising gentleness against her door, not wanting to wake her if she was sleeping. "We're coming in…"

Since the stargazing incident a few days ago, Sakura had been more free with her personal space, as if something inside her had warmed to them then. It hadn't been the first time they had impinged upon her bedroom with her in it, but it turned out to be the first time they would do so to find Sakura in such a state of dishabille.

The girl was innocently curled up amid sheets that she had draped somewhat over her body, covering the majority of her flesh…which was rather a good thing since her shirt had gotten rumpled until the majority of it was bunched up around her chest, showing off a wide expanse of pale, milky abdomen. The very tops of her thigh-highs peeked out from under the bottom edge of the blanket.

And with a surprising amount of speed, Kisame snatched various packets of candy out of his housemates' hands, tossed them somewhat haphazardly by Sakura's bed in a loud clatter that did nothing to rouse the unconscious girl, then proceeded to chase the other Akatsuki members out of the rose-haired girl's room and down the stairs.

=*~*~*=

"I…I must have fallen asleep when I went up to change," Sakura muttered to herself, blushing embarrassedly as hazy bits and pieces of the night before registered in her mind. The thoughts were queuing up now, memories of falling asleep on the couch, and again later when she ran up to her room to change swiftly surfacing. "And this candy…"

She had to assume it was from her housemates.

A light blush dusted over milk-pale features, a smile beginning to form at her lips. They were so considerate of her sometimes that it made her want to alternately squeal with a childish sort of glee, or somehow return the favor. She would cook them breakfast today, she decided.

It was one of the things she knew for certain they enjoyed, most of the group being late risers as a whole, and none really caring enough to prepare any sort of breakfast other than cereal when they were given the chance to sleep in. She'd discovered it when she'd thanked the boys her first week with them after the beach trip by cooking them breakfast, to be hailed with profuse thanks from the garrulous like Deidara, and quiet words by even the more stoic ones such as Sasori and Itachi.

With a quiet giggle at the pleasant memory, she strode over to her closet to find a sweatshirt to wear – mornings were getting colder and she had no clue if the rest of the house was as warm as her room – only to gasp in surprise at the object she found within.

Wrapped in cellophane and tied with a crimson bow, a black and orange wicker basket laden with treats sat atop the pile of laundry at the bottom of her closet.

A cursory glance showed that the basket held a small case of the tremendously delicious Ferrero Rochers that she rarely gave herself a chance to eat because of how much of a strain they put on her wallet (she could never stop at just one or two), an assortment of other favorite sweets, and a packet of what turned out to be chocolate covered orange peels that made her gasp with delight. Underneath the basket was an envelope, marked with "From Naruto and Sasuke" on the front.

Ripping open the flimsy paper covering with inelegant haste, Sakura read through the contained card with a grin spreading over her features.

And then, she snatched up the first sweatshirt her hands reached, pulling it on haphazardly as she tried to somehow tie back her unruly pink locks with one hand. Finally giving up on that in favor of just combing through her rose-blush tresses with her fingers, she bolted out her room, just barely snagging her keys as she rushed out.

Down the stairs she pounded, mindless of the ruckus she was causing for once, around the corner to the corridor that led to the house's front door – straight into a hard, male body.

"Ow…"

"Sakura, are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh, Sasori!" she greeted, jumping to her feet with a disarming grin. "Sorry, I completely wasn't looking where I was going! That was clumsy of me. Well, I'll see you later!"

The words fired out of her mouth like each sentence was a bullet, her excitement bubbling over as she scooted around the redhead with a wave goodbye and dashed out the front door without letting him get in a word in edgewise.

She didn't notice the frown of displeasure that settled over his features as she hurried out of sight.

"Where is she going this early on a Saturday?" he muttered to himself, feeling aggravation beginning to blossom at his temples. "And in whose sweatshirt?" He glanced up to notice the heads of his fellow housemates appearing at the top of the stairs around the corner, their faces reflecting the mixture of confusion and annoyance he was feeling.

=*~*~*=

"Come on, come on, someone's gotta be up by now," Sakura muttered to herself as she danced about in front of Konoha dorm, even this little setback not enough to dampen her high spirits. "It's nearly ten in the morning guys, please get the door!"

She was actually getting pretty chilly as she stood there, stamping her feet in her fur-lined boots to keep her body temperature high, dressed in nothing but flannel pants, a t-shirt, and a large, black hoodie. But with no one to open the door for her and no key to this dorm that wasn't hers, she was stuck outside until someone woke up and came downstairs to help her.

As if summoned by thought alone, the door gently creaked open and a pale, familiar face peeked around the corner.

_'Neji?'_ But no, the hair was a dark, almost purple, shade of ebony, the features more delicate than those of her soon-to-be-tutor; the eyes were the same though, with a lavender cast to them rather than silvery-grey but really did she know anyone else with such pearlescent eyes?

"Ano…"

"Oh, sorry," Sakura replied with a blush that didn't show under her already quite pink cheeks, her face wind-chapped and chilled. She'd probably been staring at the other girl rather strangely. "Um…I'm here to see Naruto and Sasuke?"

"Ah…yes…um, you must be Sakura?" the other girl asked as she let Sakura in.

"Yes, though you seem to have me at a disadvantage," Sakura laughed as she shed her boots and smiled at the warmth that filled her when she stepped into the Konoha dorm.

"Hyuuga Hinata," the pale-eyed girl introduced shyly, her lips ghosting into a smile.

"Hyuuga…are you related to Neji-san by any chance?"

"Neji-niisan and I are cousins," Hinata explained, her pearly-hued eyes going a little wider at the mention of her relative. "Do you know Neji-niisan?"

"H-he's supposed to be my tutor," Sakura admitted with a blush that, this time, was visible.

"Are…are you struggling with a class, Sakura-san?" Hinata asked as she followed the other girl out of the entrance hall.

"Not with the subject matter," Sakura murmured darkly before brightening, "but please, call me Sakura, Hinata."

"O-okay…"

"Hopefully I'll see you around," the rose-haired girl added as she nodded her thanks and turned to hurry upstairs, interested to have met another resident of Konoha dorm. Hinata seemed a nice sort of girl, and it would be nice to have other female friends than just Ino.

But as she mounted the stairs to the third floor, her thoughts quickly focused on stealth and smothering her giggles as she crept down the corridor to the door left slightly ajar at the very end of the hallway, terribly thankful for the fact that Naruto always insisted on sleeping with the door open.

Her two favorite boys were comatose when she snuck into their bedroom, various pieces of costume and piles of candy wrappers lying around as proof of their rambunctious night. She could tell they had commenced in their annual Halloween candy-eating contest already, an event she had seen only once or twice on the grounds that she really couldn't stomach watching them stuff their faces at such speeds as Naruto (and Sasuke when he had a mind to) achieved, feeling a rush of happy nostalgia take her by surprise. It made her almost regret what she was about to do.

Almost.

Slipping between their beds, she silently pulled back the curtains that covered their window, bathing the room in golden sunlight. Neither male moved, burrowed under thick comforters as they were. It was the one similarity between Naruto and Sasuke besides their utterly inflated egos (so she jokingly told them): both boys slept with their heads covered by their blankets to block out the sunlight for maximum hours of unbroken rest. She softly pushed open the window shutters, letting cold, November air filter into the room.

Then, she tiptoed back to the foot of their beds, grasped a corner of each boy's blanket in a hand, and _yanked._

Light and cold hit the blond and dark-haired sixteen-year-olds like a twin pair of battle-axes, slicing through any hoped for semblance of sleep.

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

The girl in question stood casually at the foot of their beds, a corner of their blankets gripped casually in each hand with a nonchalantly innocent smile held in place on her delicate, elfin features, the very picture of elegant grace in spite of being clad in pajamas and a too-large zip-up hoodie. A picture she shattered the next moment by dropping the blankets and springing into first Naruto, then Sasuke's laps to bury the boys in heartfelt thanks.

Downstairs, more than one sleepy head rose out of its respective nest of pillows and blankets, wondering just what all the noise was so early on a Saturday morning. Didn't visitors have the politeness to keep down the noise level when they were over these days?

"You're welcome, Sakura-chan!" Naruto told her with a bright laugh as he energetically squeezed the rosy-headed girl who sat sandwiched between himself and the younger Uchiha. "We thought you'd like them."

"They were wonderful, you two," she said earnestly. "You guys must have been ages trying to pick all that out!"

"Okaa-san helped us out," Sasuke informed her with a small smile, the one that only she brought out of him. "We wanted to show you our appreciation on a night where tricks and treats are the norm. You've always loved sweets."

"Sasuke-teme and I were thinking of pranking you too, but Mikoto-san talked us out of it," the blond added with blissful innocence.

"It was dobe's idea," the Uchiha said flatly as emerald-hued eyes flickered from one boy to the other.

"TMI, guys," Sakura laughed as she sifted her fingers mindlessly through the discarded candy wrappers littering the floor. "Too much information! You don't just tell a girl you were thinking of pranking her but got convinced otherwise! How am I to enjoy my present with that thought hovering in the back of my head?" she teased.

"As if you'd worry about something like that," Sasuke replied in a voice that said he thought her too sensible for something like that, a tone that the viridian-eyed girl found rather gratifying. "You got your revenge on us in the way you chose to wake us."

"Yeah, Sakura-chan," the blond pouted cutely, making his rosy-headed friend giggle, "that was mean so early in the morning."

"It's not that early," Sakura protested as Naruto wrapped an arm around her waist and used the top of her head for a chin rest as he proceeded to close his eyes and snore as if overcome by tiredness. "It was late enough that I was planning on…ooh…" she trailed off, immediately drawing the attention of her two friends.

"What is it, Sakura?" the sable-haired male asked, a frown forming as he took in his friend's sudden silence.

"I-It's nothing," Sakura reassured him with an embarrassed grin. "I was thinking of making my housemates breakfast this morning because they left me a pile of candy, but I was so excited after getting your guys' gift that I completely forgot and ran out of the house to come here…"

She didn't notice the look of satisfaction that passed between the two males at the knowledge that she still held them in higher regard than her housemates at Akatsuki dorm. The hoped for amount of confusion they had wanted to plant in the minds of the upperclassmen had been put into effect by Sakura's hurried departure from her own house straight to Konoha dorm.

"Well, what they don't know won't hurt them," Naruto said cheerily, snuggling into Sakura's neck so that she laughed and squirmed at the ticklish sensations he evoked as he brushed the ends of his rough blond hair against her neck. "Speaking of breakfast…"

"You're kidding, right?" Sakura joked. "I'm not making you anything, you wanted to prank me!"

"But, Sakura-chaaaan!"

=*~*~*=

"Blueberry pancakes! Sakura-chan, the only way this could have gotten better is if you'd made ramen!"

"Dobe," Sasuke interjected, not even bothering to shake his head in mock disapproval. After almost a decade of Naruto's company, both he and Sakura knew full well of the blond's rampant ramen obsession, and had learned to work around it: Sakura by alternately learning how to cook the dish and pounding Naruto into the ground when he suggested it, and he himself by ignoring the word entirely.

"Ano…Sakura-chan…"

"Hmm?" Sakura looked up from the pancake she'd been pouring, the batter making funny patterns on the griddle now that her attention was elsewhere. "What's up, Naruto-kun?"

"How many pancakes are you planning on making?"

The plate beside Sakura was piled high with the breakfast treats, way more than Naruto, Sasuke, and herself could finish in a single sitting. "Um…"

"Sakura?"

"Ahahaha…" she laughed sheepishly, running a hand through her messy rose-hued locks. "I guess I'm just so used to making pancakes for eight now that I went on autopilot. Mou, I'm really sorry, Sasuke," she added, noticing the dark-haired teen's frown. "I know Mikoto-san taught you to be frugal."

"No, it's alright," Sasuke reassured his friend softly. "I'll go see if Ino and Shikamaru want to have some breakfast with us. Obviously we can't eat this all by ourselves, even with the dobe eating for three."

"Shut it, Sasuke-teme…"

Laughing at the comfortable interplay between her two best friends, Sakura turned back to her pancakes, making the last few extra large so she'd feel like she wasn't making as many pancakes as usual. It had surprised her to discover that she'd just instinctively made pancakes for eight instead of three; apparently living in Akatsuki dorm had rubbed off on her more than she'd expected. A tiny grin skated across her elfin features.

The thought was actually rather…nice.

"Ne, Sakura-chan, when'd you buy that sweater?"

"Um…oh!" A blush exploded at her cheeks as she realized just which sweatshirt she'd grabbed in her hurry to leave her dorm. "This is um…well…"

"Sakura-chan…"

"Geez, you sound like Sasuke," Sakura complained, turning back to the last of her pancakes to avoid the blond's cerulean gaze. "I fell and a guy lent me his sweatshirt so I wouldn't walk around after school with mud all over the back of my skirt. I washed it but when I saw him yesterday I didn't have the hoodie with me and I was in a hurry this morning and grabbed whatever I could from my closet…"

"You're rambling, Sakura-chan," Naruto laughed, getting up to squeeze his best friend's waist comfortingly. "I was just curious. I didn't think you'd be the type to wear guys' clothes, or splurge on really expensive stuff either. I saw that hoodie in a store the other day and it was almost ninety ryo on sale."

"It was _what?!_"

Sakura had been brought up frugal in spite of being a Dean of Medicine's daughter, and the exorbitant price tag was almost frightening to the girl who did most of her shopping at outlet stores where the going price for a pair of jeans was about thirty ryo. "And he just _gave_ me this?" she groaned tugging at the garment tied around her waist. "I even got mud all over it…"

"Hey, I'm sure he didn't mind if he was nice enough to lend you his sweatshirt in the first place," Naruto said soothingly, tucking the shorter girl under his chin and bringing their bodies closer together until she could feel his words vibrating in his chest under her fingertips.

"Thanks, Naruto," she sighed pulling away after a few minutes. "You really do know what to say."

"Hey, that's what I'm here for. I'm your number one cheer-up squad, remember?"

Sakura laughed and slid another blueberry pancake onto his plate. "How could I forget? You always told me that whenever I was unhappy and upset."

"And _you_ always said I wasn't. You weren't very nice back then either, Sakura-chan," Naruto whined, obviously remembering the way she'd so rudely awakened him that morning.

"Mou…I wonder why I always said that," Sakura muttered, almost to herself. "Was there someone else who comforted me? It couldn't have been Sasuke, he didn't develop that sort of thing until after I moved away."

"Well, you did-,"

"Forehead!" Ino's cheery greeting interrupted as the blonde catapulted into her pinkette friend, almost upsetting the huge plate of pancakes in Sakura's hands. "You'd make such a good little wife!"

"_Madame Gaston! His 'little wife'! No sir! Not me! I guarantee it! I want much more than this provincial life!"_ Sakura sang, darting out of Ino's hold with a grin. "Thanks, but no thanks, Ino-chan. I've no thought of getting married yet. Hey are you the only one coming to help us eat?"

"No, I don't think so…Sasuke went to get some other people," Ino said, her eyes flickering to the stairs she had come down not a minute ago.

"I hope he brings lots," Sakura said as she passed out pancakes. "I don't think we can – oh…"

"Haruno-san."

"H-hello, Neji-san," Sakura mumbled, her cheeks growing pink under his grey-tinted pearl gaze, "I-I didn't know you were a Konohan…"

"Sakura-chan! You know Neji-teme?"

"Naruto! Stop calling everyone 'teme'! It's rude," Ino said, waving a pancake-laden fork under the other blond's nose.

"Yeah…N-Neji kinda, sorta volunteered to be my tutor for Chemistry because Orochimaru-sensei thinks I'm not up to scratch since I transferred here," Sakura admitted sadly, making a rather unhappy face at the memory. "W-we have a tutor session next week Thursday…this week's got cancelled due to excessive Halloween preparations happening after school that day."

"That rat bas-,"

"Naruto!" Sakura chided. She'd never been a huge fan of excessive swearing, and tried to keep her best friends from doing so around her as well as she could.

"Sorry, sorry, Sakura-chan," the blond apologized immediately. "It's just that he pisses me off a lot…"

"It's okay, really," the rose-haired girl said, trying to comfort her best friend as she blushingly passed Neji a plate of pancakes. "I'm sure the study sessions will be fine…"

"Study sessions?"

Sasuke had returned, noting Neji with a bland look of rather cool indifference and flanked by a very sleepy looking Shikamaru and a cheerful Chouji whose prevalent grin only widened at the sight of the fluffy piles of pancakes on the kitchen table, to catch the very end of her conversation with Naruto.

"Um…"

With a sigh, Sakura began to explain the matter all over again to Sasuke, plunking the warmed syrup onto the tabletop rather harshly in her annoyance as she recounted the tale a second time.

"So I have study sessions with Neji-san in Orochimaru-sensei's classroom this Thursday," Sakura finished, as she nodded her thanks to Naruto who poured her a glass of orange juice once she'd sat down between himself and Sasuke. "Oh, hey, Shikamaru."

The lazy teenager waved a greeting in response, but Sakura noticed with surprise that Ino a few seats away stiffened, her fork pausing momentarily above her pancakes.

"Hi, Sakura. Pancakes?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, have some," she spoke up distractedly, tearing her eyes away from her female friend to focus on the dark-haired boy who looked as if he'd just woken up. The tiny frown that had begun to mar her forehead only increased as she noticed the strange tension of discomfort that had suddenly risen up between Ino and the cloud-loving Konohan.

_'Weird…'_ she mused to herself, turning back to her own breakfast, _'I think Ino and I need to talk about this new development. Something's up…'_

=*~*~*=

"Sakura."

"Ah, Sasori?"

It was a little surprising to see him out of his room; Sasori was fond of his privacy and spent most of his time there when he wasn't helping her out with Chemistry. The thought made her wince a little, remembering her breakfast conversation. Sasori and the rest of Akatsuki dorm knew that she was getting tutored the upcoming week, but she hadn't mentioned that the lessons might continue at least until the end of the semester.

"You ran off rather early this morning. In your pajamas."

Sakura laughed, coming to sit across from Sasori in the common room, unperturbed by his way of speaking. She was too used to it by now to do more than bat an eyelash or raise an eyebrow at his way of stating obvious facts before making more analytical statements. The bluntness didn't bother her now, but she didn't pick up on the thread of annoyance that laced his words, still too delighted with her visit to Konoha dorm.

"Sorry if I surprised you, Sasori," she replied easily, curling up on the armchair she'd chosen across from the redhead who sat with a book resting against his knee. "Naruto and Sasuke left me a really nice present in my closet so I had to go thank them!"

Sasori's eyes narrowed further, his face taking on a menacing cast that Sakura, once again, didn't notice as she continued to chatter on about her two best friends. Spending time with them outside of school had made her almost excessively cheerful, and her desire was to ramble on about them without pause.

"They can get into our building?" Sasori's soft-spoken question sliced through her words, making her pause.

"Oh…" Sakura blushed, feeling embarrassed at the older male's sudden scrutiny. "Sorry…that was probably my fault. I was pitching such a fit yesterday about my Halloween costume that we most likely forgot to lock the door after us when we left."

Sasori's violet eyes, so dark that they looked almost black in most lighting, softened at her words. "Be more careful, Sakura," he admonished, almost kindly, surprising the rose-haired girl. "Halloween is filled with pranks at Hishin. We were probably spared last night because all our members returned home quickly."

"I'll remember," Sakura promised, hiding a tiny frown. While her excuse was a plausible one, she was almost certain she'd had to unlock the front door when she'd returned from the masque.

_'But the last thing I need to tell my housemates is that my two best friends might possibly be proficient in breaking into our dormitory…that probably won't go over well.'_

"So where is everyone else?" Sakura asked, attempting to turn the conversation away from the possible B&E talents of her two best friends.

"Kisame dragged the juniors out to get…things…" Sasori replied vaguely, moving on to the others before Sakura could question him, "and Hidan went to get a movie. Kakuzu is working."

"It's still so hard to believe that Kakuzu works at a firm already," Sakura sighed, resting her chin on her hand, "I want to be a doctor but I can't even think of working at a hospital for another…six years at least? Not officially anyway."

Sasori shrugged, his behavior bordering on indifference; but his eyes watched her carefully, belying his true feelings. "They will not be back for a while," he said, rising from his seat on the couch.

"Oh well," Sakura murmured, the warmth of the common room making her sleepy. She shrugged out of the jacket that engulfed her smaller body, not noticing the smug look that passed through Sasori's eyes as he saw the name of their dormitory printed across her chest. Turning on her side to curl up in a little ball, using the armrest of the chair as a pillow, she let her eyes flutter shut.

"Sakura…"

There was no reply, the girl almost asleep already.

With a tiny sigh, Sasori put down his book and crossed the room to her, touching her shoulder with uncommon gentleness. "Sakura…"

A small, rare smile curved Sasori's lips, and he pulled her into his arms, feeling gratified when she gave a noise of contentment and buried her face in his shoulder.

"You're really weak to the warmth, aren't you," he murmured into her hair as he carried her – bridal style, the position was not lost on him – out of the common room and up the stairs to her room.

"Saso-kun," she mewled, wrapping her arms around his neck and yawning, "Sakura…is not weak…"

He didn't answer, too surprised by the use of an unforeseen nickname. So they progressed in silence until he reached her bedroom, the door of which was lying a little bit ajar, candy scattered all over her clean floor.

"Thank you…"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you," Sakura repeated with a sleepy yawn as she slipped out of his arms and burrowed herself under her covers, "for the candy. I'll thank everyone else too," she promised as her eyelashes fluttered and she disappeared into unconsciousness.

Sasori sighed lightly, bending over the slumbering girl's still form as he gently stroked her cheek with a finger. "You're welcome, Sakura," he told her quietly, slipping from the room like a silent wraith.

The door shut behind him with a quiet click, a small frown marring the redhead's forehead as he disappeared down the stairs, leaving a sleeping Sakura behind him.

=*~*~*=

"Ngh?"

It was pitch black.

Sakura glared sleepily at the darkness, completely clueless as to where in the world she was. A groping hand knocked a handful of peppermints off her bedside table, and she found the switch to the lamp by her bed, flooding her room with a golden light.

She was in the room she'd woken up in this morning, the candy still all over the floor, her closet open and the gift from Naruto and Sasuke scattered over her clothes, sheer stockings she had discarded lying in a tiny heap at the foot of her bed.

"How…did I get here?"

She would have pursued that particular train of thought longer if not for the sudden rumbling of her stomach. She'd had only breakfast that morning, a rather sizable pile of pancakes smothered in syrup but only breakfast all the same, and it was already dark. Making a face, she slid out of bed, a little disgruntled when she realized that she'd been wearing the same outfit all day…and spent most of the day sleeping too.

"Food first, questions later," she told herself with a sheepish grin, and she slipped out of bed, gently sweeping the candy out of the way as she headed for the door, grabbing a Starburst in passing to tide her over until she could find something more substantial to eat in the kitchen.

The house was strangely silent still; making her wonder if her housemates were all out, but that question was answered when she turned to descend the steps to the first floor, to be faced with someone at the foot of it, coming up. Her hands, in the middle of unwrapping the cherry sweet she had grabbed from her room, stilled in their work, frozen under the gaze of the one who stood dressed in a navy t-shirt and ink-black jeans, barefoot otherwise.

"I-Itachi…"

"Sakura. You're awake."

She nodded dumbly, feeling shy with the intimacy of the two of them alone on the stairwell.

"We were worried you might be sick."

"I'm alright," she replied softly, unwilling to descend the stairs and closer to Itachi but strangely drawn to him. "Sorry to have worried everyone…where _is_ everyone anyway?"

"Kisame demanded we go out to get medicine for you," the dark-haired junior replied, ascending one step closer to her. "The others will be back in half an hour."

"I'll have to thank them for everything when they return," Sakura said with a little smile, taking a few steps down the stairs. "For the medicine and the candy…"

"I got you the Starbursts and Kitkats," he said, almost as though it didn't matter.

"I love those! How'd you know they were my favorites?"

They were only two steps apart now, and of a same height nearly, Sakura finding it almost strange to be looking down into Itachi's eyes.

"Because…"

He was eating peppermints, or had eaten them recently. She could smell the sweetness of them on his breath, mingling with his quietly whispered word.

And in a flash it came back to her, the scent of peppermints, the feel of candy wrappers in her hands, quiet words, all of it coalescing into a single thought that cut through her mind like a lightning flash through mist.

Her breath caught in her throat.

"'Tachi-nii?"

* * *

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!!**

Think of this as my Christmas present to you all! A new chapter of Belonging and the hope that Sakura will remember Itachi in her childhood! Hopefully I can finish my Christmas fic, Snow Angels, in the next 24 hours...

Also, I am now about halfway through the story! Already halfway! Only halfway! Oh wow...*authoress goes off to think of how much longer this fic is going to take, leaving a sign that says "Please don't forget to feed the muse something happy for Christmas, she loves reviews!" behind her*


	15. A Glimmer of Truth

I could cry! I'm so sorry this chapter is short and over a week late! Aria (that would be me) was sick and took a sixteen hour flight over the International Date Line on New Years Day, and what with college and everything, this chapter just didn't get written until late this week! Mea culpa (that's latin for something...I always thought it was an apology but now I'm not so sure...) and so I'll just hurry with the chapter and leave you with a more detailed A/N at the end of the chapter!

Disclaimer: Not mine, also not beta'd.

* * *

**Chapter 15: A Glimmer of Truth**

"'Tachi-nii?"

His eyes widened, his heartbeat suddenly loud in his ears as he reached up involuntarily to catch the emerald-eyed girl's hand

"Sakura-chan?"

She blinked, her cheeks flushing with color as she stumbled, tripping, startled by the sound of her name. The starburst in her hand tumbled to the ground, clattering down the steps as Itachi caught her.

He was warm, his hands instinctively coming up to hold her secure, a palm gently supporting the small of her back. Her arms wrapped around his shoulder, holding tight as she pressed her warm cheek against his neck. She could feel his heartbeat against her skin, the rhythm still strong in spite of the clothes between them.

A blush colored her cheeks as she realized she wasn't wearing anything under her shirt, and she pulled away with a nervous laugh, stopping when his hands around her tightened on the fabric of her shirtsleeves.

They were nearly nose to nose, standing only one step apart, and she now had to look up just a little to meet his eyes. It was too close, the intimacy too much, and she dropped her gaze as her temperature rose another notch.

"Sorry, Itachi," she apologized, her eyes firmly fixed on a small tear that was developing in the left knee of his dark jeans, "I…I have no idea why I called you that…I-I didn't…"

"Don't."

She stopped dead, her eyes flying up to meet his dark gaze that seemed to gleam _crimson_ in the gloom, the obsidian depths reflecting a swirling mixture of emotions that made her breath catch in her throat.

"Don't apologize," he said, his voice gently rich as sable and velvet. "I want you to call me that." His voice darkened impossibly, so soft that Sakura found herself leaning forward to catch the words that made her blush scarlet as soon as she did.

"I like it."

"O-okay then…Itachi-nii…"

He shivered at the sound of his old nickname, his hands unconsciously tightening on her sleeves as he leaned towards her, drawn to her as she was to him by some unspeakable, subconscious bond.

_Guurgleee!_

Sakura went, if at all possible, even redder, and pulled away with an embarrassed laugh. "I'm so hungry! My stomach's gotten really talkative…"

"Come downstairs," Itachi replied with a small smile, and if he was disappointed at the lost moment, he didn't show it. "What do you want to eat?"

"Just a sandwich," was the cheery reply as the two teenagers made their way to the kitchen for food.

"I'll make you one."

"I'll get us something to drink then," Sakura said as she rummaged around in the refrigerator, handing Itachi lettuce and pickles and sandwich meat.

_'And I'm going to finally look into something that's been bothering me for over a month now…'_

Handing the older boy two bottles of soda, she made some excuse about going upstairs to get a sweatshirt to keep her warm, and slipped out of the kitchen, flipping open her cell phone as soon as she was out of earshot.

_Ring. Ring. Ri-,_

"Sakura?"

"Hello, Sasuke-kun…do you have a minute?"

=*~*~*=

"Honestly man, what's wrong with you?"

Kisame reflected that it wasn't very often he used that particular phrase, and definitely not to his roommate, but it wasn't very often that he found Itachi _sulking_. So he felt this was one of those times that merited some drastic measures.

"There is nothing wrong."

"Y'know," he said offhandedly, flipping through his Literature textbook, "you're not as good at lying as you think."

"Uchiha do not lie," Itachi replied stonily, his dark eyes fixed on his own notes.

"Yeah…and Uchiha do not sulk either, but I've seen your brother do it before, and you're doing it right now. And out of curiosity, if Sakura was your little brother's best friend, and a good friend of yours back when the two of you were little, how come I've never met Sakura?"

Itachi's glare clearly said he wasn't appreciating the comments or the tangent, but he shut his notebook and answered the question. "You and I met in seventh grade. Sakura had already moved away by then and visited Sasuke and Naruto rarely. They usually visited her."

"I see…so what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing."

Yup…they were going nowhere for a while.

"Hey, Kisame, I ne-woah…what's up with him?"

A pale and a blue-tinted face turned to their half-open door where Deidara stood, expression quizzical.

Kisame glanced from the blond to his dark-haired roommate and shrugged. "I couldn't get it out of him. He's been like that since yesterday."

"_Yesterday?!_"

"Yup."

"Wow…that's…"

"_If_ you're done discussing me while I'm still in the room with you two," Itachi cut in irritably, "Was th-,"

_Bzzz! Bzzz!_

Three pairs of eyes zeroed in on the phone buzzing on Itachi's desk…whose owner snatched it up before either of the other two could get at it.

"Hello?"

"Nii-san."

=*~*~*=

"Haruno."

Instantly, all expression dropped off Sakura's features as she turned to face her least favorite teacher.

"Sensei…"

"You're early."

"I didn't want to be tardy," she replied blandly, masking her irritation at his words with difficulty.

Her teacher's amber eyes narrowed. "How very…forward thinking of you," he hissed, an unpleasant little smiling tugging his thin lips. "It's barely five minutes after school's been let out and your locker's on the other side of the buiding. One might almost assume you were…avoiding something? Or someone."

Sakura, in the process of fishing her Chemistry notebook out of her backpack, let her eyes flicker with anger until they were hard as flint and glittered like emeralds. She disliked his implication, and hated it more that he was right.

She'd ditched her housemates.

Well…not technically…but the last time she'd spent any duration with Orochimaru and without supervision, the entire dorm had shown up afterwards, and it was something she wanted to avoid.

It wasn't that she didn't appreciate their efforts, but if Orochimaru saw them together, she knew she was going to have a hard time pretending she didn't really care about Akatsuki dorm.

And that was the last thing she wanted him to discover. He would only make her life more miserable with that knowledge.

_'I won't let you use them against me,'_ she thought as her teeth clenched to hold in the caustic words she wanted to snarl at him.

"Haruno. I believe I asked you a question."

"I'm n-,"

"Sensei. Sakura-san."

Sakura flinched in reflex, though relief flooded her at Neji's timely arrival.

If Orochimaru had wanted to pursue his line of interrogation, he seemed not to want an audience for it, so he said nothing, merely letting his grim smile widen at Sakura's obvious discomfort in Neji's presence.

"Shall we get started with studying?"

"Y-yeah…"

"Come in, both of you," Orochimaru ordered in his usual high-handed way, leading them into his classroom. "Use this lab station."

It was the one closest to the front of the room, and, Sakura noticed with a nervous little gulp, the one closest to the teacher's desk. She hadn't expected to be so closely under the eye of her sensei… _'Which is obviously why he organized it that way,'_ her mind grumbled as she slid into a seat next to Neji and opened up her Chemistry notebook. _'That little, utter piece of-,'_

"Sakura-san, so this is how the equation for solving for pH was derived…"

She'd learned a lot of this already, but Neji, his pearlescent eyes flickering to her as he flipped through the textbook, had chosen portions of the textbook that were more theory based that Orochimaru usually skimmed through in favor of more practical applications.

A tiny smile of gratitude lit Sakura's features, the expression growing as Neji answered it with the smallest of answering smiles.

"Now, I want you to copy this down…"

Neji's words died away. Sakura had been copying the lines already when he'd first written them down, so what she scribbled now wasn't and equation at all.

_Thanks for picking stuff that sensei doesn't usually cover to study._

It was unusual, and Neji was surprised to find himself both suppressing a smile and feeling a tiny flutter of nervousness pass through him. The very act of secretly passing notes to one another amid Chemistry formula right under Orochimaru's nose held lots of appeal; it was indubitable that she was Naruto's best friend. This was something the blond would have fully condoned.

"Now here is how you apply something like this."

_He rushes past it in class but there are always questions on the exams about theory that everyone gets wrong, _Neji wrote back, halfway through an example problem as he unconsciously leaned closer to Sakura as he pushed the notebook between them closer to her.

She moved away slightly, her brow twisting into a frown, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Orochimaru smile at the action.

He was enjoying her discomfort!

She'd known that was the case already, it was utterly obvious by the way he tormented her in class, but it was more irritating to see him gloating over it during a more-than-just-uncomfortable session with just him, her, and Neji.

"Um…"

_Thank you for the pancakes._

It was only through the practice she'd gotten in the last month at schooling her features to look only mildly interested in Orochimaru's class that she didn't stare at her notebook openmouthed, blowing their cover entirely.

And it took a lot of control not to blush when she wrote back, _I'm glad you liked them._

=*~*~*=

"Stop getting worked up, it's not like he's doing anything to her."

"But they're still so _close!_" Deidara grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as he glowered at the studying pair through the tree's thick foliage. On a nearby branch, Sasori rolled his eyes, though he couldn't convince himself that Sakura studying Chemistry with her tutor Neji didn't bother him.

Chemistry had always been their thing…and the thought that someone else got to see Sakura that way annoyed him. That Neji, who barely knew her, would see the cute way Sakura scrunched up her nose when a problem frustrated her, or the way her eyes would light up when an answer fell into place, was downright irksome.

"Shut up, Deidara," Kisame, sitting one tree over, muttered. "You know what happens if we get caught."

The entirety of Akatsuki dorm, minus the girl currently getting tutored in the Chemistry classroom, was once more seated in the branches of the trees ranging outside Orochimaru's windows.

"She really needs to learn that telling us she has tutoring the day before and then not showing up at her locker after class is not the proper way to avoid someone," Zetsu commented, running the maple leaf he had in his hand between his fingers. The trees they were sitting in were dyed red with the advent of autumn, so the boys themselves had strived to wear as much camouflaging red as possible. Unfortunately, no one could hide Zetsu's vibrant green hair, so they'd given him a baseball cap to cover it up.

"She shouldn't be avoiding us at all," Deidara interjected irritably. "She's been so wrapped up about this tutor session that I think she's completely forgotten to order the winter uniform."

"She did. I had Sasuke order hers," Itachi said in a quiet monotone.

The others grew silent.

Itachi had been quiet and moodier than ever lately, growing marginally better only around Sakura, as if he was making an effort to cheer up for her sake. They would have been lying if they said it wasn't at least a little worrisome.

"I'm fine."

"If you say so," Kisame muttered under his breath uncertainly, turning back to the Chemistry classroom.

After a few tense moments, the others followed suit.

_'I'm fine,'_ Itachi repeated to himself, _'Fine as can be under the circumstances…'_

=*~*~*=

_ "Nii-san."_

_ "Otouto?"_

_ "Nii-san, I need to talk to you. Can you meet me outside your dormitory in five minutes?"_

_ Itachi's dark eyes narrowed slightly, strangely perturbed by Sasuke's tone of voice; his little brother was worried about something, and the fact that he would call Itachi over it meant that it was hardly something trivial._

_ "I'll see you there."_

_ "What's up?" Kisame asked as soon as the conversation was over, the miniature scrabble he and Deidara had had over Itachi's phone completely forgotten in the face of Itachi's uneasy expression._

_ "Sasuke called. I'll have to go see him."_

_ "Family business stuff?" Deidara asked, as serious as the other two now with all his usual cheeriness pushed aside._

_ "I'm not sure."_

_ With a nod to the other two, Itachi slipped his cell phone into his pocket, grabbed a sweatshirt in case he and Sasuke were going to be outside for a while, and made his way downstairs._

_ He didn't have long to wait._

_ Sasuke appeared on the path that led to the other dorms less than a minute after Itachi himself had arrived._

_ "What is it, otouto."_

_ "Not here," Sasuke said cryptically, "I ditched the dobe because I don't think _he_ remembers this either and if we just stand around out here someone might overhear us."_

_ Itachi, tense as soon as the word 'remember' had slipped passed Sasuke's lips, nodded stiffly and the two brothers disappeared through the autumn foliage until they reached an empty clearing that looked like it hadn't been frequented in a while near the back of the dorms._

_ "Now tell me what it is you called me for," Itachi demanded, his arms crossed over his chest._

_ "Sakura asked me about what happened when she was ten."_

_ It was like ice had been poured down his spine. If he'd thought he was tense before, it was ten times worse now, the memories from that time whirling through his head like a confused fall of puzzle pieces all bouncing off in a billion different directions._

_ "What did you tell her?"_

_ The voice that spoke couldn't possibly have been his, sounding distant and strange in his ears._

_ "What was I supposed to tell her?" Sasuke retorted irritably, running a hand through his hair. "I said I wasn't entirely sure but her mom probably remembered. Itachi-nii, you can't just keep her ignorant."_

_ "I don't want to," Itachi bit out, the nails of his hands digging into his palms. "I want her to remember me more than anything, but not if it means she has to remember _that_ too."_

_ "Itachi-nii…"_

_ "She doesn't have to know the real reason why Orochimaru hates her so much!"_

=*~*~*=

"Okay, I think that's enough for today."

Sakura glanced at the clock in surprise; an hour had already passed like a flash.

"Sakura-san?"

With a squeak of surprise, she shot to her feet, knocking her notebook onto the floor, along with a flood of her papers.

Blushing hotly with embarrassment, she scrabbled on the floor for her papers, a feeling of humiliation overtaking her just as her shoulder bumped into something warm.

Neji was on his hands and knees beside her, collecting up scattered handouts like it was nothing.

"N-Ne-Neji-san!"

"You remind me of my cousin. Hinata-san stutters like that too sometimes."

"Oh! Well! Um! Th-thanks!"

And then she was running out the door like a scared kitten, not even noting the strangeness of him addressing his cousin with an honorific in her hot embarrassment.

"I can't believe I acted like such a _spazz!_" she berated herself, running blindly through the halls and out to the courtyard in front of the main building. "Way to be a total idiot Haruno Sakura…"

The buzz of her cell phone in her pocket broke her from her self-depreciating reverie.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Sakura honey!"

"Aunt Shizune?"

"Hey, hey, no need to sound surprised! It's not like you didn't know I was coming."

A huge, hot-pink and embarrassed silence followed the statement.

"Damn it! Your mother forgot to call you, didn't she! I knew I shouldn't have left the job to Tsunade! It's been up to her ears with Jiraiya and work and a possible, pending promotion; I should have called you myself!"

"Um…"

_'Jiraiya? As in…the _Headmaster?!_'_

"It's alright, Sakura honey. I'm going to be arriving tomorrow at any rate, so I'll see you Friday evening alright?"

"Y-yeah…"

Sakura stared at the phone as Shizune hung up, processing her sort-of-aunt's words.

Thoughts of Neji, Orochimaru, and Chemistry all fled as the reality of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks.

"Holy _crap!_ My aunt's going to realize I'm living with _seven guys!_"

* * *

Hey guys! Sorry this chapter was so short! I hope the next chapter will be longer!

Also, **Updates will now be every OTHER week Friday!** I really didn't want to have to change the update schedule, but my course load this quarter is a lot more than I expected, and I really need to bring up my grades ^^; in other news, if there are special occasions or I happen to be free to write a lot during a certain week, I will be happy to upload chapters on Fridays when I'm not actually planning on updating to let you guys get lots of chapters as fast as possible (while still clinging to whatever semblance of quality I've been keeping up so far).

Oh and PLEASE DON'T KILL ME for not really making Sakura remember Itachi ^^; she WILL! I promise! But the way she does is rather intrinsically wrapped up in another chapter and the process of all of the remembering is a little more arduous and yeah...hopefully you guys will be appeased with the little hints Sasuke and Itachi gave during their rather tense conversation in the forest? There'll be more hints soon! Because Sakura needs to remember fast...

Again, very sorry for the delay and I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Aunt Shizune is visiting in the next chapter!! The muse does also appreciate cookies and reviews (and plans to bug me as much as possible so chapters come out quickly...)


	16. Overarching Perplexity

Finally, finally, FINALLY! Thank GOODNESS! I'm done with this chapter, sorry it's so very...transition-y. There are portions of it I'd like to improve on, or be clearer about, but it's all tied up with everything and blah! At any rate, sorry this got up so late, I was in such a hurry today that I completely FORGOT IT WAS FRIDAY. Yes, it was that bad.

Disclaimer: Not mine, wish it was but nope, only the irises in this chapter are mine. Or were they orchids? No, they were irises. You'll see when you get there.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 16: Overarching Perplexity**

"Sakura?"

"Yeah?"

"STOP FREAKING OUT!"

"Ow," the rose-haired girl whimpered, pulling her phone away from her ear as she grimaced at Ino's yelling. "But…"

"But nothing," Ino retorted smartly, "You're just going to have to deal with your aunt. How bad can it be? Isn't your Aunt Shizune the one who gives you cute clothes?"

"Yes…"

"Then she's probably aware of the possibility of you attracting cute guys."

"That's not the point!" Sakura yelped, totally unaware that her voice had reached a point where muffled echoes of her cries floated down to the floor below, alerting all and sundry of her distress. "She'll probably try to set me up with one of them!"

"_What?!_"

"Mou, Naruto, get out of my room!"

"Saku-,"

"Shut up, dobe."

"Seriously you two, get ou-!" _Beep…beep…beep…_

"Um…Ino-chan?" Sakura mumbled, staring at the phone now resting in her hands. "Er…"

She could easily guess what had happened. Naruto and Sasuke had probably managed to walk by Ino's room during the blonde's outburst, stuck around because that's the kind of thing Naruto did, and then heard _her_ outburst, causing the blond boy to react unthinkingly and burst into the other girl's room. And now their conversation was over.

Just great.

"Seriously, Ino-chan, kick them out soon and call me back…I really don't know what to do…"

It wasn't just her Aunt Shizune that was the matter either. The Akatsuki were…acting weird.

She'd noticed it at dinner, a sort of quiet tension in the air that made her eat quickly and excuse herself as soon as possible, feeling out of place between all the boys who seemed more on edge today than usual.

It had been even more obvious when Sasori had offered to help her with Chemistry homework. She'd already solved all the harder problems with Neji and made lots of headway into the easier stuff, so she'd declined the offer (feeling virtuous that she wasn't going to be wasting any of the senior's time), only to have Sasori's eyes flash with something suspiciously like hurt before the redhead had turned away and walked off without a word.

And now, with her homework finished and no call back from Ino, she was wondering if she ought to go downstairs, corner Kisame, and ask him what the heck was going on. He was the one who she felt ought to be the most straightforward with her.

She would also have to let her housemates know that her aunt was going to be staying with them for the weekend.

"Please let them be on their best behavior…I mean, either Aunt Shizune's going to see one of the usual scenes we have here…" Sakura felt her cheeks heat at the thought of being caught getting cuddled by one of the boys, it happened pretty often, "Or she's going to see _all_ the scenes we usually have here and I'll get a big lecture on why it's a bad idea to toy with guys' feelings," Sakura groaned. "But Aunt Shizune, you don't understand," she whined, pleading with empty air, "I'm not actually toying with them! It's like they're toying with me! Anyway it doesn't mean anything…"

A small blush blossomed across her cheeks. "I…I don't think so anyway…"

And yet she couldn't be sure…hadn't she been a hair's bredth away from kissing Itachi a week ago? And Deidara had kissed her… And – no, she was going to ignore all of that for now. Aunt Shizune was a much bigger problem.

Her mind made up, she managed to resolutely walk out of her bedroom and close the door behind her before terror seized her and she almost scampered back into her room.

"What am I going to _do??_"

"What are you going to do about what?"

Sakura nearly tripped over nothing in her surprise as her head swiveled towards the voice.

Kisame was at the top of the stairs, one brow raised quizzically.

"Kisame-nii!"

The entire day just hit her like a ton of bricks all over again, and Kisame was exactly what she'd wanted. Without any serious forethought, she catapulted into the taller male, who grabbed the banister beside him to keep the two of them from meeting a painful demise at the bottom of the stairwell.

"Oi, candy-girl, what's up? You've never acted this excitable."

"I haven't?" Sakura asked, laughing weakly with her face still pressed to the senior's chest. "That seems strange…I feel like I'm always freaking out…but maybe I act that way more around Naruto and Sasuke…"

"Well neither of them are here so I guess I'm going to have to do. What's wrong?" Kisame asked, gently twisting them so that they could sit at the top of the stairs and talk a little more comfortably. The last thing he wanted was for them to fall and break their necks.

"A number of things," Sakura sighed finding herself relaxing in spite of all the tension she'd been feeling that day. "But before I go into all that, don't make it sound like I'm just 'making do' with you because Sasuke and Naruto aren't here!" the rose-haired girl teased. "I call you Kisame-_nii_ for a reason."

"You also call Itachi that," the older male teased back, playfully ruffling the girl's hair. "Are you putting us in the same boat?"

"No…Itachi…Itachi asked me to call him that…"

Kisame frowned, glad Sakura was resolutely avoiding his gaze to stare at her bare feet so that she didn't catch sight of his expression.

"It's not that I don't…I don't want to…it's just…" Sakura sighed again. "I call you Kisame-nii because I think of you as a brother…I'd call Naruto or Sasuke that if I felt they were mature enough to deserve it. You three are like family. Itachi, on the other hand…"

"He's not family?"

"No, no, that's not it at all!" Sakura said quickly, hastily, blushing brightly in the golden-lit hallway. "Calling him Itachi-nii feels right too…but differently so. It doesn't make any sense. And I…" her cheeks got hotter still, "I don't think that I…think of him like a brother much," she mumbled softly.

A moment of silence passed between them.

"You can laugh at me now," she added petulantly, emerald eyes still fixed to the floorboards.

"You…_are such a clueless goofball_."

A thick arm wrapped around her head, pulling her into a headlock, a fist coming down to make some intimate contact with the top of her head until, with a squeal, she fought her way out of the hold.

"KISAME-NII!"

He laughed then, so hard that he shook with his mirth until Sakura wanted to smack him one. "That's the candy-girl I'm used to," he said when he finally got control of himself again. "You're not the kind of girl to brood about something like this. I know you're kinda shy around us, and guys in general, but I've never seen you sit in a sulk over a guy and I'm not going to let you start now."

"Kisame-niiiii," she groaned, laughing too now. "I'm not sulking!"

"Right…"

"Mou, anyway," she continued, rolling her eyes in mock annoyance, "That's not the real issue here. My Aunt Shizune is coming here tomorrow and my mom forgot to tell me, so I was going to go downstairs and beg you guys to be on your best behavior…"

Kisame raised a single, quizzical eyebrow. "Uh, hold on…she's the one who gives you cute clothes right?" Getting an acquiescent nod from the girl sitting next to him, he continued, "Well what's the problem? We're pretty good guys…it's not like we treat you badly."

"No, no! That's not it at all," Sakura stammered hurriedly, her laughter nervous. "My Aunt…" she frowned, "How do I explain this…she thinks I need a boyfriend."

"…"

"…"

"_What?!_"

"Yeah…" Sakura said, blushing crimson as she twiddled her thumbs like a shy little seven-year-old, "Shizune-nee gives me cute clothes for that reason too, I think. And so…if she…it's just…"

"If certain guys, like Deidara, keep being all clingy, Shizune-nee is going to begin to think that you should have him as your boyfriend?"

"Something like that…"

"Uh, wow…"

"It's not as bad as I'm making it sound, probably," the emerald-eyed girl laughed as cheerily as she could. "After all she's already been pretty set on Naruto for the last two years."

There was another ballooning silence where the senior stared, utterly flummoxed, at the girl sitting next to him.

"She _what??_"

"I-It's not th-that weird," Sakura stammered, "Sasuke's mom, Mikoto-san, has always w-wanted me to da-date Sasuke-kun since I had a crush on him wh-when I was younger." She caught the look on Kisame's face and turned the shade of a ripe strawberry. "I should j-just stop talking…"

"Yeah, man that sounds troubling," Kisame said after a pause, ruffling the girl's hair as comfortingly as he could. "It's pretty late now, so I think you ought to go to bed. I'll tell the guys about Shizune-san for you."

Sakura gasped. "Really? I won't…I won't have to tell them to stop cuddling me b-by myself?"

Kisame bit back another laugh as he grinned back at her. "Sure thing candy-girl. I'll play the big, overprotective older brother and get you out of the trouble."

The rose-haired girl gave the older male a squeeze. "Thanks so much, Kisame-nii…"

=*~*~*=

"You're fidgeting."

"Am I?" Sakura asked with a laugh, straightening the hem of her skirt nervously. "I'm just worried."

"About your aunt?" her blonde locker-mate asked, shoving a history notebook into her lavender-print backpack.

"Yeah," the viridian-eyed girl admitted with a small smile. "I just really don't want her to set me up with any of my housemates…"

Ino paused; her hand still plunged into her backpack. "Why not?" she asked in a too-reasonable tone of voice. "You said she's done it before with Naruto-kun and it hasn't affected any serious relationships. You, Naruto, and Sasuke laugh it off all the time…"

"It's true," Sakura replied, setting her own, full-to-bursting backpack on the ground. "But Naruto and Sasuke and I have been friends since we were six. We know it doesn't mean anything and I'll choose whomever I want and that probably won't be for years and years because I want to become a doctor and that's a really long path…_but my housemates aren't like that._ What if they really take Shizune-san's words to heart? If they're this…almost suffocating when I'm not dating anyone…what'll happen if Shizune actually chooses someone? It'll all go downhill!"

"I think you'll have to worry about that later," Ino whispered cheerily, making surreptitious pointing motions. "You've got company."

_'Not the Akatuki-,' _she turned, _'Yeah…not the Akatsuki at all.'_

It was Sasuke and Naruto.

"I can't believe Shizune-nee is coming to school!" Naruto declared effervescently, practically bouncing over to Sakura to envelope her in a bear hug. "Are you excited?"

"More nervous than excited," Sakura laughed, gently extricating herself from her blond best friend to give Sasuke a light hug in greeting too. "You guys know how Shizune-nee is…"

Naruto's mischievous snicker was completely uncomforting. "Yeah, we definitely do."

_'Uh oh…'_

"Naruto…you don't have anything planned, do you?"

"Of course not," the blond boy said airily, once again being completely uncomforting. "Why would you assume that?"

"Because you never _don't_ have something planned," Sakura muttered to herself.

"The dobe is being ridiculous, ignore him," Sasuke said easily, nodding in greeting to Ino with an arm wrapped cordially around Sakura's waist which he used to steer the rose-haired girl down the hall, ignoring her confused protests as Naruto collected up her backpack and closed her locker.

"Woah, wait, where are we going?!" Sakura stammered, surprised both by Sasuke's random display of affection as well as the unexpected kidnapping.

"I thought you wanted to be picking up Shizune-nee at the train station," the dark-haired sixteen-year-old answered blandly as Sakura stared at him. "She called you back and told you what time she'd be showing up during lunch today, right? We can take my car."

"Oh…uh…yeah…"

"Say goodbye to Ino-chan, Sakura-chan" Naruto laughed, catching up to the other two. "You're always lecturing us about being polite."

Sakura jumped and blushed, twisting around in Sasuke's arms. "Sorry, Ino-chan!" she called back, gratified to find her blonde friend waving with a wry little grin of her features.

"Hey, no problem," Ino called back with a grin, "I'm hanging out with Chouji today!"

"Have fun!"

"I think you'll be having more fun than me, Sakura-chan," Ino laughed softly as the trio turned a corner. "After all…what Chouji and I are discussing is Shika-kun…"

=*~*~*=

"Mou…I wish we'd calculated traffic at this time of day…the streets are packed!"

"This is definitely a lot worse that I expected," Sasuke agreed with the girl curled up in the back seat. "Perhaps you should call Shizune-nee to tell her we'll be late?"

"Good idea."

_Ring…ring…ri-_

"Hello, Sakura-chan!"

"Hey, Shizune-nee, I'm ju…so we…really heavy traffic. Do you mi…"

"Um…say that again, Sakura-chan? You're cutting out…"

"Shizu…the traffic is re…so please… Sorry…"

"Got it, Sakura-chan, bye!"

Shizune stared in confusion at her phone as she tried to figure out just what Sakura had been trying to say.

"I guess since I already have the address to her school, I can get there myself."

With a cheery, undaunted smile, Shizune hailed a cab.

=*~*~*=

"Shizune-nee! Shizune-nee!"

"Geez, where the heck is she?" Naruto grumped as they regrouped after having searched the train platform and the parking lot. "No one's found her?"

"No."

"Not a clue," Sakura groaned worriedly. "I'd better call her again. She might have decided to wait at a café near here…"

Pulling out her phone she hurriedly began to dial.

_Ring…ring…ring…ri-_

"Sakura-chan?"

"Hey, Shizune-nee! Where are you? We've searched the station but we just can't find you!" Sakura said worriedly, an uneasy suspicion settling in her gut that was confirmed as soon as Shizune answered her.

"Oh! Is that what you meant? I thought you were asking me to get to your place on my own because of how the traffic was slowing you down! I caught a cab and I'm at the administration building…"

"Oh…um…well then we'll see you soon," Sakura said hurriedly, hanging up so hastily that she forgot to say goodbye.

Taking a deep breath, she rounded on her two best friends. "Shizune-nee's already almost at Akatsuki dorm! We need to get back to school _fast!_"

=*~*~*=

"Who are you calling now, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked as they sped back down the street towards Hishin Academy.

"I need to let the guys know that Shizune-nee's almost there or else who _knows_ the consequences that might occur," Sakura replied hurriedly, punching in Kisame's speed dial, hiding the little grin that blossomed even in such a moment of anxiety. At the start of the year she'd had her mother, Shizune, Naruto, and Sasuke on her speed dial. Now, a few months later, she had the entire Akatsuki, Ino, Shika, and Chouji as well, more that two times the original number.

"Oi, candy-girl, where the hell are you?" an irritable voice barked into the phone, Kisame once again acting like an overprotective mother hen.

Sakura muffled a giggle. "I'm on my way home from the train station, but Shizune-nee made her way back home by taxi so you have to make sure no one misbehaves! We'll be home as soon as we can!"

"Got it, I'll grab them!"

The phone went dead.

"Goodbye to you too," Sakura muttered with a worried little smile before turning to Sasuke with a dead-serious look in her eyes. "Now floor it!"

The jet-black Cadillac peeled down the street, more like an inky streak of lightning than a car.

=*~*~*=

"Guys! Geez, get your butts out here, Sakura says her aunt's already on her way here!"

Kisame made a face as a couple of doors opened up on the second floor, various guys appearing around corners. "Deidara, Itachi, Hidan, Kakuzu…_crap,_" Kisame swore, glancing at the four who had appeared. "_Where are Sasori and Zetsu?!_"

=*~*~*=

"Silly Sakura-chan, I guess I was supposed to wait for her at the train station, she's obviously not here," Shizune muttered to herself, running a hand through her dark hair with a little grin on her lips. "I have no idea why she freaks out about me…" the grin now was completely knowledgeable; Shizune knew very well why Sakura reacted the way she did sometimes, after all, the incident when Shizune had decided Sakura would have been best matched with Naruto had only happened three years ago.

"Now…where am I?"

She'd followed the directions the administrative office had given her correctly, at least, she was pretty sure she had; but she seemed to be walking down a path that looked very little used. And, rounding a rather thick clump of trees, she came face to face with a scene that led her believe she'd taken a wrong turn after all.

A high school boy was replanting a number of deeply colored irises, their violet color vibrant against his pale skin. His amber eyes were trained on the flowers as he tamped down the rich loam around them.

But the most eye-catching thing about him was the slightly messy mop of bright green hair on his head.

Shaking her head to clear it of strange thoughts of what a brightly colored couple Sakura and this stranger would make, Shizune opened her mouth to ask him if he knew the way to Akatsuki Dorm…

"Ne, Veronica-chan, you and your sisters have grown up so prettily."

"Ano…" Shizune mumbled, her thoughts stuttering to a stop as she watched in dumbfounded amazement as the green-haired youth cheerily chattered away to the iris named 'Veronica'. _'What the heck?!'_

"I'm sure Sakura will appreciate you…** Pink would probably suit her better though.**"

_'What…in the world?'_ The second time the boy had spoken, his voice had been rougher, slightly more gravelly, and (in some strange way) less friendly than before while still being…almost identical to his other voice. _'Yeah…that can't be right…right?'_

"But there aren't very many pink flowers here. **We'll just have to pick some up the next time Kisame takes us to Bellflower Square.**"

Shizune stared wide-eyed. _'And now he's referring to himself with the royal 'we'? What _is_ this guy??'_

"**Who are you,** I don't believe you're a teacher, and if you aren't one, then I see no reason why you should be here."

Shizune stiffened, startled that she'd been noticed. _'Since when…'_

"I'm…I'm actually looking for my niece," she said as she stepped out of the shadows of the trees. "I…I think you might know her? Her name is Haruno Sakura…"

"Sakura? Oh, you're her sort-of-Aunt Shizune, aren't you," the green-haired junior said, getting to his feet as he dusted off the dirt from his hands. "Kisame does not know where Sakura is, so she's probably with her other friends, but you can wait in the dormitory," he said, surprisingly pleasantly at first, but Shizune heard him mutter, so quietly that she was sure he hadn't meant for her to overhear, "**If you worry Sakura, we won't stand for it.**"

Shizune's obsidian eyes narrowed slightly. _'What's going on here?'_

"_There_ you a-oh…"

As Shizune and her amber-eyed guide exited the forest, they were rounded on by six irritable (and handsome, Shizune was quick to notice) guys, led by a tall youth whose slightly blue-tinted skin made the medic think of someone who wasn't getting enough oxygen. But his lungs seemed to be working fine in the first few seconds where he'd bellowed at the verdant-haired boy before realizing she was there.

His reaction would have been comical if it hadn't been so strange.

He swallowed his words as soon as he noticed her, dodged forward to grab her guide and drag him back to the others, turned around swiftly for a fiercely whispered conversation, and turned back again with a surprisingly easygoing smile on his face.

"Hello, are you Sakura's Aunt Shizune?"

"Y-yes?"

"I'm Hoshigaki Kisame, one of Sakura's housemates. She isn't home yet, she actually meant to pick you up at the train station but the traffic going there was pretty bad apparently, but she's on her way if you'd like to wait in the common room."

"Oh…okay…that sounds good?" Shizune agreed, following the small crowd of males into the building that she was led to, critically observing their interactions and finding more than a little interest in things that Sakura had left out in recent conversations.

She was obviously quite friendly with these seven males, and Shizune hadn't seen a single girl since her arrival. With a raised eyebrow, she followed, a rather obvious conclusion coming together in her mind.

_'Sakura-chan…is living with seven guys…and no one else!'_

=*~*~*=

"Hopefully, hopefully," Sakura panted as she jogged up the cobblestone pathway to Akatsuki Dorm, tailed by Naruto and Sasuke. _'Hopefully Shizune-nee hasn't met up with everyone yet…'_

She scrabbled with the front door, missing the keyhole twice before she managed to actually turn her key in the lock so she could burst into the building and rush to the common room where muted voices were pleasantly chattering away.

_'Oh please, oh please, oh pleeeeease…'_

She skidded to a stop at the doorway of the common room, breathless as she scanned the scene before her. "Shizune-nee!"

"Hello, Sakura-chan!" the woman greeted easily, rising from her seat next to Itachi (Sakura noted this with particular horror) to cross the room and wrap her arms around her sort-of-niece. "I'm sorry to have made you run around on such a wild goose chase, I thought you wanted me to get to catch a cab on my own."

"I wouldn't have asked you to do that," Sakura laughed nervously, making surreptitious "go away" signals to her housemates with a hand behind Shizune's back. "You've never even been to Hishin Academy."

"I got here just fi-," but Shizune never managed to finish her sentence because just then Naruto and Sasuke appeared in the doorway behind Sakura, and she untwined herself from the rose-haired girl for the two boys she'd also known since all three sixteen-year-olds were only six.

"Naruto-kun! Sasuke-kun!"

"Hi, Shizune-nee…"

Sakura sighed with a tiny tint of relief as she wiped sweat off her forehead. Sasuke had managed to get them back to the school in record time, pulling off several dangerous maneuvers with surprising ease, and it looked like nothing untoward had happened.

A gentle hand caressed the small of her back reassuringly, making Sakura turn, her brain idly noticing that she wasn't jumping in surprise at the unexpected touch.

"You have been running around a lot; you ought to rest, Sakura," a quiet, velvety voice spoke softly by her ear.

Sakura tensed then, the touch of his breath tickling her neck in a way that made goosebumps rise on her arms. "I'll be fine…really, I-Itachi-nii…"

A tiny smile fluttered across the dark-haired male's features at the quietly whispered word, the expression tinted just a little bittersweet that she had yet to actually say the name without stuttering it. "You are breathless and," his thumb swept gently over a shadow under one of her viridian eyes, "you seem to have been getting less sleep. No one wishes for you to collapse."

"Oi, oi, you two," Kisame hissed before Sakura could answer, grabbing Itachi into a playful headlock before releasing him just as Shizune turned around to see what the commotion might be. "You especially," the senior added, giving his roommate a no-nonsense look. "Behave, we're supposed to make sure Sakura's aunt doesn't get any funny ideas about us."

"Is something wrong?"

"No, no, Shizune-nee, everything's fine," Sakura reassured the older woman hastily. "Ne, I'm hungry, don't you want to go out to eat? We could…we could take my friend Ino-chan…"

"Um…Sakura-chan…what about Naruto and Sasuke, and your housemates?" Shizune asked curiously, the tilt of her lips just a little bit sly.

Sakura made a tiny face at the other woman, "I thought we could have a girls' night out first? We haven't talked in a really long time…"

"Very well," Shizune acquiesced, "where would you like to go?"

=*~*~*=

"Well so much for dinner," Naruto muttered plaintively to himself as he stared after the closed door through which Sakura and Shizune had exited not too long ago.

"Naru-dobe, stop thinking with your stomach and start thinking with your brain," Sasuke muttered as he dragged his roommate around to face the seven Akatsuki males that had been abandoned just like them. "I'm pretty sure we have more important things to talk about than dinner…"

=*~*~*=

"Sakura-chan…do I really make you that nervous?"

"Eh?"

It was later that evening, after a rather fun dinner with Ino and Shizune, and the last thing on Sakura's mind was a serious discussion. But it was obvious that that was exactly what was on Shizune's mind, so the viridian-eyed girl sighed to herself and finished changing into her pajamas before answering.

"Not really, Shizune-nee…why would you think I get nervous around you?"

"Well…" the dark-haired woman glanced over at the closed door of Sakura's bedroom, "I guess you just didn't seem very comfortable today around your housemates?"

"W-well…I mean…you know I'm guy-shy," Sakura stammered, cursing her embarrassed reaction. "D-doesn't it make sense that I don't feel totally comfortable a-around them?"

"If we were talking about you a year ago, then yes," Shizune responded, "but you're…you're different around them."

Viridian eyes met dark chestnut ones, and glanced away.

"I guess living with them helps," the sixteen-year-old muttered embarrassedly. "They're…they're decent guys."

"I thought so," Shizune commented nonchalantly. "So why are you so uncomfortable? I mean, you've lived with them for a while and Itachi-kun was even your friend when you were little."

Sakura's answer to why she felt uncomfortable around her housemates when Shizune was around died away on her lips as a lightning bolt of shock ran through her. And the first words out of her mouth weren't a response but a question.

"I…I knew Itachi?"

Shizune turned to her sort-of-niece (Sakura's father, Dan, was actually Shizune's uncle, making the relationship between them one of cousins though the age gap was pretty large) with a surprised look on her face. "What do you mean? You, Naruto, and Sasuke were inseparable when you guys were little, and who do you think made sure the three of you never got into any major trouble?"

The rosy-headed girl's emerald eyes grew huge as her face paled at Shizune's words. "Th-that was I-Itachi?"

"I suppose you don't remember him really well because this all happened when you were seven or so," Shizune said, half to herself, "But Itachi-kun seemed to try his best to watch over you guys so that you three didn't do anything too insane. Or, at least that's what it seemed like to me the few times I was over."

"R-really…" Sakura mumbled, her voice further muffled by the pajama shirt she was pulling on over her head.

"Yup, I'm pretty sure it was Mikoto-san's influence. When the three of you were over at Sasuke-kun's place, she always had Itachi-kun follow you guys around, and he was especially careful about-Sakura?" Shizune asked, cutting off her own train of thought abruptly at the girl suddenly diving under the covers of her bed. "Sakura…are you alright?"

"Annh! Mmmhph!"

"…Ano…I have no idea what you just said, sweetie…"

"I don't…I don't remember him," Sakura muttered sadly, finally popping her head out from under the covers. "I barely remember more than a few moments of him…and I don't remember them with any sort of clarity…"

Tears filled her eyes as she buried her face into her pillow. "I don't remember him at all…and I think there might be something…something my mind doesn't want me to know…"

Shizune frowned, gently running a sympathetic hand over Sakura's rose-hued locks until the unhappy girl was asleep.

"I guess Tsunade-san was right…Sakura doesn't seem to remember what happened between her and Orochimaru at all…"

=*~*~*=

"Wait! You're leaving already?"

It was Sunday evening, two days after Shizune's arrival on Friday, and Sakura had no idea why the older woman was so set on leaving.

"Oh, Sakura-chan," Shizune said with a teasing smile, "I've got other business to attend to, mostly with your mother. And don't you have school tomorrow? I can't just be taking you away from your studies and there's no point in me being here if you'll be in classes all day."

"W-well yeah but…"

"But nothing, silly," the older woman replied reassuringly. "I'm sure you'll relax once I've gone."

"Shizune-nee!"

"Kidding, kidding," the dark-haired woman replied, patting Sakura's shoulder kindly. "Really, you should rest, Sakura-chan. You seem really tired out…"

"I'm fine, Shizune-nee, and it wasn't you making me uncomfortable," Sakura mumbled, her cheeks warm and pink. "It's just…just…"

"These guys are different?" Shizune asked, surprising her cousin. "I could tell by the way they acted around you, even if they tried to hide it," she replied to Sakura's shocked expression, "They like you."

"I-Ino-chan said the same thing…but I didn't believe her…"

"You ought to," Shizune said with a kind smile. "I'm pretty sure she's right. And," she added with a grin, "as per your efforts not to let me think that there's anything going on, I won't try to pair you up with any of your housemates, but I do think you ought to check out Zetsu-kun's garden."

And, leaving an utterly stunned Sakura at the front door, she disappeared out into the chilly November evening.

"That was pretty unexpected, yeah?"

"DEIDARA!" Sakura shrieked, nearly jumping a foot into the air in surprise. "How long have you been there?!"

The blond, leaning nonchalantly against the kitchen doorway halfway down the entrance hall, shot her a slow, lazy smile. "Since your Shizune-nee told you to rest…"

Sakura's cheeks bloomed a dark crimson, the rush of blood to her head making her temples pound strangely. "Y-you shouldn't have been eavesdropping…"

"But I heard something so interesting," Deidara teased, catching Sakura around the waist as she tried to breeze by him into the kitchen. "_Very_ interesting…"

"Shut up, Deidara," Sakura muttered, still blushing, though a tiny grin was beginning to tug her cheeks. "I have no idea what you're talking about…"

He wasn't having any of it though, and with a single, sharp tug, he had her unbalanced and in his arms, crimson and breathless with her viridian eyes radiating uncertainty.

"Deidara?"

"You know, Sakura," he murmured, dragging out her name in a way that made her imagine he might be savoring the syllables, "You need to stop thinking that you might not be wanted…fooling yourself into thinking you're not isn't something someone as smart as you would do."

"U-um…"

Deidara chuckled at the blushing female in his arms. "Come on..."

"O-okay," Sakura stuttered, her temples now pounding from the dark crimson color suffusing her features, "M-maybe…maybe th-there's some truth…to all of that…"

"Good girl," the blond cheered, nuzzling the sophomore's neck before letting the flushed female go. "You deserve a prize! Why not have some of the cake Shizune-san left behind?"

Sakura turned sharply away from the cheery junior to hide her bright red cheeks, and focused on the cake on the kitchen table. It was a pretty slice of strawberry cream cake, the top decorated with one of the whole fruits, the two layers of cake separated by a layer of pink, strawberry cream.

"Here, have some milk too," Deidara said kindly, placing a full glass by the plate of cake and handing the girl a fork. "You look like you could use the sugar."

"Mou, what's that supposed to mean?" Sakura asked as she raised a mouthful of cake to her lips. "Everyone keeps telling me I look tired but I…feel j-just…f-fi-,"

The fork clattered against the floor, untasted strawberry cream cake splattering against the table as the room went dark to Sakura's eyes and the ground came up to meet her. She was unconscious before she hit the floor.

"SAKURA!"

* * *

I know, it's a terribly predictable thing to do isn't it ^^; I've gone and made her pass out. But after this chapter is the take-care-of-Sakura chapter, and then we finally get to the Autumn Festival and things really do start wrapping up, I promise! I think there's maybe ten or twelve more chapters to go at this point? Sorry about the lack of guys in this chapter...there'll be MANY more next chapter ^^ that's a promise. To whoever was the 450th reviewer, I'll look you up, I haven't had a chance to really get my thoughts straight ^^;

*harried* Er anyway, the muse says she's going to try to keep me working but to know that I've got a midterm next week wednesday so she's only going to get so much whip-cracking done before school takes over. She hopes you'll send her more reviews and cookies though cuz she's planning on using them to bribe me to work ^^


	17. Truth in Dreaming

Hi again, everyone!! I'm so sorry it's been so long since the last time I updated this fic! It's been like...almost two months now?? The muse says it's because all the schoolwork I've been doing gave her a headache so she took some time off, but she's back now and throwing plot bunnies at my head like there's no tomorrow, so I took a break from writing a final essay to finish this up and post it! Sorry it's shorter than my previous chapters, but it's heavy on content and FINALLY reveals what happened between Orochimaru and Sakura! Hopefully the muse will throw more ideas at me, ne? Please forgive me for not updating sooner, and thanks to everyone who reviewed!!

Enjoy!! There isn't as much fluff in this one as before, but the next chapter should be fluff-central if I've got anything to say about it, so stay tuned!!

Disclaimer: I own Naruto in my dreams. Also, if I owned it, it might have to be called Sakura instead. XD

* * *

**Chapter 17: Truth in Dreaming**

"What the hell did you do?!" Kisame snarled, doing his best not to smack Deidara one as he held the blond by his shirt collar.

The guys had flooded into the kitchen at the sound of Deidara's cry, and dissolved into a certain amount of expected pandemonium on discovering Sakura unconscious on the ground.

Even Deidara, being restrained by Kisame, seemed unconscious to the angry senior holding on to him, his attention solely focused on the pale girl in Sasori's arms.

"Wh-what's wrong with her?" he asked shakily, his face as pallid as Sakura's own. "Sasori no danna…what…"

Sasori sighed and silenced Deidara with an irritated look, turning that same glare on Itachi when the obsidian-haired male wouldn't let go of Sakura's hand to let Sasori check her pulse.

"She's probably just suffering from mild exhaustion," Sasori said, gently checking her temperature with a hand against her forehead. "She's been stressing out about Shizune-san and us and it might have been keeping her from sleeping. She just needs to rest, and she's definitely not going to school tomorrow."

Behind Sasori's back, a number of glances were exchanged and cell phones surreptitiously pulled out of pockets to request classmates for the next day's notes…

=*~*~*=

_"Orochimaru-sensei?" But that made no sense…she was ten. He wasn't..._

_ What was he doing here?_

_ But then his pale face was growing paler and frigid and terror made her back away. He loomed over her like a large, ghostly apparition, and – without thought or conscious decision – she was running, glancing over her shoulder and breathless like she'd been sprinting for forever._

_ The scenery turned terrible, familiar walls – was that her kitchen? The pictures on the wall were ones she'd made during her elementary school years…no, her house right now was the apartment with the large windows she shared with her mother, or maybe the Akatsuki dormitory that she thought of as her second home – turning into dark, snarling beasts that gnashed their teeth and nipped at her heels while Orochimaru chased her relentlessly through the…forest?_

_ What was she doing in a forest?_

_ She wasn't even sure if this was the woods by the dorm…no, she was _ten._ Why did she keep thinking of a dormitory? She was too young…she lived with her mom, three streets away from her best friends Sasuke and Naruto. Ten-year-olds didn't live in dormitories…this had to be the park by her house._

_ Then why was she…_

_ The monstrous, pale shadow of Orochimaru crashed through the underbrush and she fled again, too frightened of him to be terrified when she tripped over nothing and plummeted down a dark hole that appeared in the ground before her…_

=*~*~*=

"Nngh!"

"Sakura!" Deidara whisper-yelped, jumping out of the seat placed by her bed, the book in his lap tumbling to the floor. He ignored it, immediately at her bedside and completely focused on the rose-haired girl with the flushed, sweat-slicked face whose eyes stared glassily through him to something only she could see. "Sakura?"

"Wh-why…why are you…?" she asked shakily, her voice weak and frightened. "St-stop it!"

"Sakura!" Deidara gasped as he touched her skin. She was sweat-drenched and burning up. "This is definitely not just exhaustion, yeah" he muttered worriedly, feeling his pulse speed up to match her fluttering heartbeat. "Damn it, Sasori no danna…"

Fishing out his cell rather than opening her bedroom door to yell for his roommate as he would have done if Sakura had been healthy, he waited feeling more and more antsy as he waited for Sasori to pick up.

Two floors downstairs, the redhead glanced down at the buzzing cell phone he'd pulled from his pocket and then wordlessly thrust the shopping bag with its load of orange juice and various teas into Kisame's hands and started out of the kitchen.

"Oi! Sasori! You're the one who insisted we go to the grocery store for stuff!" the gill-tattooed male yelled after the amber-eyed senior.

The eighteen-year-old paused at the door and flashed a sharp smile over his shoulder. "Deidara gave me a call even though he probably heard us get home ten minutes ago. I want to know what's up, and," his smile grew thin as a razor blade, "I hate waiting."

"Twit," Kisame muttered under his breath, thrusting the orange juice into fridge with unnecessary force. "Utter…twit."

Sasori hurried up the stairs, glaring at his still-buzzing phone until he reached Sakura's door.

"Deidara, you could just come downst-!"

"Sasori no danna!" Deidara pleaded, interrupting the older boy with a note of panic in his voice that instantly set Sasori on edge, "Sakura…Sakura's burning up!"

Sasori cursed, gently pressing his cool hand to the girl's sweaty forehead. "Deidara, go downstairs and get the others. Sakura's going to need medicine…"

Deidara, panicked and flushed with his own worry, fled before his roommate had finished his sentence.

"Well, at least he's being useful," Sasori muttered to himself as he turned back to the girl. "First of all…Sakura, Sakura, can you hear me?"

The girl made a quiet gasping noise and seemed to wake up for a bit, her eyes regaining some of their focus. "Sa-Saso…"

"Don't talk," Sasori ordered brusquely, his tone of voice completely different from the gentle way he swept a hand down the back of her neck in a soft, massaging sort of way. "We need to keep you hydrated and you're getting sweaty, so you're going to have to change out of that shirt into something lighter." Sasori gave her a tense smile. "I'll be outside."

It was nearly ten minutes before Sakura knocked on her door to signify that she had finished changing, but by then all the other Akatsuki members were at the door too.

"Tylenol and Ibuprofen," Sakura mumbled when Sasori bundled her back to bed. "Fever…don't use ice pack…"

"I know, I'll deal with it," Sasori reassured her a touch impatiently, waiting only until she was in bed and falling back asleep before turning to the others. "She's not going anywhere tomorrow, or even for the next few days."

"Obviously, yeah," Deidara responded, voice tight.

"So now what?" Zetsu interrupted, every word carefully calm. "I'm certain all of us planned not to go to class tomorrow, but what about the long run? We can't all just skip classes until Sakura gets better."

"We'll deal with that after Sakura's fever goes down," Itachi replied sharply, his eyes gleaming like two obsidian shards. "For now, what can we do?"

"Sakura needs Tylenol, Ibuprofen, water, and if she develops any more symptoms, we need medication to deal with those too," Sasori instructed. "We need to go back to the grocery store."

"Zetsu, Hidan, and I will go get what Sakura needs," Kakuzu spoke up, startling his housemates.

"I'll go with you," the redhead said bluntly, glancing from the unconscious, rose-haired girl to the jade-eyed male. "I'll know best which medicines to give her."

"Kakuzu," Kisame added as the four turned to leave, "Pay whatever is necessary. Bill it to me later."

Kakuzu's eyes gleamed like emerald ice chips, radiating his chilling anger. "As if I would think money a consequence right now," he bit out.

The shark-like senior's grin was fierce. "Just making sure," he said nonchalantly as Kakuzu flashed him one last glare before leading the others off, Deidara following to get some orange juice and various available medicines from Sasori's room before the others set off. The sharply triumphant expression on Kisame's face melted away as he glanced to the girl and then his pale roommate. _'What's with him?'_

"It's nothing, Kisame," Itachi said in a deadpan. "There's nothing wrong…" he insisted, flashing his roommate another one of his obsidian-shard glares. "Even if that was true, it has nothing to do with you."

But Kisame's look was simply bland, coaxing words out of the younger male until Itachi found himself speaking and remembering in spite of himself.

=*~*~*=

_"Sasuke-kun? Naruto? You two are home early."_

_...  
_

"Sasuke and Naruto went out one weekend, and came back a lot earlier than expected. This was almost four years ago."

…

_Sasuke said nothing, a tiny frown line marring the space between his eyebrows. Itachi stifled the urge to raise an eyebrow; for Sasuke to show such annoyance without giving even a cursory explanation to him was pretty telling. Whatever was making his little brother mad was…important. The fact that Naruto was angrily fuming too was also a pretty good giveaway…_

_ "What is it?"_

_ "Tsunade-baa is being so unnecessarily _mean!_" Naruto griped, literally stomping his way childishly to the living room where he plopped down onto the couch, his mouth twisting into a pout. "Why can't we see Sakura-chan?!"_

'Sakura.'_ Itachi could feel his stomach lurch sickeningly at the girl's name. "Is something the matter?"_

…

"This was one of the few weekends where Sasuke and I went home, and Naruto had come with us…my little brother and his blond friend decided to drop by Sakura's place."

"And you didn't go because?" Kisame asked interestedly.

Itachi shook his head with a grim frown. "This was after Sakura had stopped remembering me…"

…

_"Sakura-chan's sick so Tsunade-baa won't let us see her!"_

_ "Shut up, dobe. Tsunade-baa is being smart. No one else will get sick and Sakura will get better faster if she gets rest," Sasuke said, a voice of reason. "We'll just wait until next week to see her."_

_ "But, isn't it weird," Naruto mentioned in a thoughtful voice, "Sakura-chan's been sick before but…Tsunade-baachan's never told us not to come in and see her for a little." He glanced at his best friend a little worriedly. "Do you think she's really just sick?"_

_ Sasuke shot Naruto a scathing glare, letting his jet-black eyes flicker meaningfully to his brother as he made a slicing shut-up-right-now-you're-totally-not-helping motion across his throat._

_ "Otouto, I saw that."_

…

"But the way Naruto and Sasuke made it sound…well," Itachi's expression turned derisive and self-depreciating, "I was fourteen. I may have…_overreacted_…"

Kisame chuckled softly in spite of himself, though he was entirely sympathetic to his roommate. It was just that Itachi had almost always been in full control of his emotions since Kisame had met him in high school, and the only time he lost it was when Sakura was involved. "So I'm guessing you went to see her?"

"Right after I got out just what had happened that afternoon out of Naruto and my brother," Itachi said offhandedly, his sharply sardonic sense of humor resurfacing as he relaxed into the storytelling. "Naruto refused to visit our house for the next three weeks."

The gill-tattooed senior snickered. "And then?"

…

_"Itachi-kun?"_

_ It was obvious Tsunade was surprised to see him; that was obvious even to Itachi standing on the front doorstep, his mind filled entirely with a twelve-year-old girl he hadn't seen in over a year._

_ "I suppose Naruto-kun didn't manage to keep his mouth shut, huh," Tsunade said as she ushered the fourteen-year-old into the apartment. "I should have just let him and Sasuke-kun in…but Sakura's flu is rather contagious. I didn't want either of them to get sick, but I should have known you'd end up here if I didn't let them in."_

'I really should have foreseen this,'_ Tsunade thought to herself as she glanced down at the silent, dark-haired boy standing in her entrance hall._

_ He was tense, almost vibrating with a subtle sort of energy, and paler than normal. Keen, medical senses picked up the sheen of sweat on his forehead, and how he seemed to be breathing a little faster than normal…as if he'd run from the train station to her apartment, and then done his best to appear normal and calm down before he rang the doorbell._

_ "Come on then, Sakura's probably sleeping, but you can check up on her since you're obviously worried," the blonde woman suggested, pointing to the door left ajar at the end of the hall._

…

"Hold on," Kisame interrupted, his brows coming together in a small frown, "Sakura only had a flu back then. If her mother wasn't worried about the whole thing…"

"It turned out to be more than that," Itachi said darkly. But his expression softened as his eyes landed on the sleeping girl, the sound of her shallow breathing barely a whisper in the room.

…

_Sakura's flushed face glistened with sweat, but other than that and a small frown line between her brows, she seemed completely normal._

_ Itachi felt a knot of panicked fear, the emotion he'd been keeping at bay the entire trip to Sakura's house, loosen as Tsunade directed him to the chair by the sleeping girl's bed. It was merely a simple flu. Rest, lots of liquids, and a low stress environment would have her up on her feet in no time._

_ "Oh, Sakura's humidifier's out of water. I'm going to just go and refill it, don't feel obligated to get up," Tsunade said lightly, hiding a tiny smile as she left Itachi to spend some time with her daughter. Now that Sakura no longer seemed to remember Itachi, she knew it must be difficult for him to spend so much time apart from the girl. "I mean, he always shadowed the 'Team Seven' trio and he and Sakura got along the best."_

_ Tsunade shook her head. "It must be difficult for you, Itachi-kun," she murmured softly to herself as she went to fill the humidifier tank with more water._

_ "Sakura," Itachi said, reaching out to touch her warm cheek in spite of himself._

_ "Ita?" Sakura whispered in response, her eyes fluttering open._

_ Lightning shot through him as he swallowed a gasp._

…

"The hell?!" Kisame barked out, dodging expertly as Itachi attempted to muzzle him for being loud. "What the hell, Itachi. She remembered you?" the senior asked, his voice softer.

"Let me explain."

…

_"Ngh…I-Ita…wait…" Her words were cut off as she gasped and struggled unsuccessfully to sit up, her eyes now wide open._

_ Her emerald orbs were glassy as two jade marbles; she was feverishly hallucinating._

_ "Oro…Oro-hakuba…p-please, why are you angry?" she whimpered, using the name she had once called Orochimaru. "I didn't…I didn't mean to ruin th-the data…"_

_ The pain in his hands made Itachi realize he'd been clenching his hands into fists until the knuckles were white with tension. Hearing the Incident through Sakura's fever-induced murmurs made him remember with too much clarity the events of two years ago. Her pain made his insides squeeze with mingled guilt and anger, at himself and the man who had inflicted his bipolar rage on her._

_ The knowledge that he had saved her then, that two years ago he'd managed to get Sakura away from Orochimaru's volatile and all-consuming fury, was something he had to cling to now as he tried to wake her up._

_ "Sakura!"_

_ "Let go! Let g-huh?"_

_ And then, like her nightmare hadn't even happened, Sakura blinked and focused on him…and pulled away with her face flushed and a strange look in her eyes._

_ "I-I'm sorry…my fever…I didn't mean to be-behave like this to a stranger…"_

_ Itachi stiffened at the words that fell from Sakura's lips, pain flashing through his body as her aspen-leaf eyes flickered to his face and back down to the bedsheets. She was so…_different_ now than the rambunctious girl who had always managed to smile for him. The girl he had adored since childhood. Biting back a bitter look of loss, he smoothed his expression into one of polite calm._

_ "Feverish hallucinations have a tendency to do that," he replied as easily as he could. "I was merely sitting with you while your mother went to refill your humidifier's water tank at her request. She is worried for you."_

_ "'Kaa-san…I've had the flu before," Sakura grumbled with a tiny smile. "She worries unnecessarily."_

_ Making a noncommittal noise, Itachi rose to his feet. "I will notify your mother that you are awake. I hope you are healthy again soon, Sakura-san."_

_ '_I can't stay here._'_

_ He swallowed the pain of her politely curious gaze watching him as he let himself out, almost wishing he hadn't come._

_ "Itachi-kun?"_

_ "Sakura is awake now, Tsunade-ba," Itachi said bluntly, not looking up as he pulled on his shoes. "I told her you were filling her humidifier tank."_

_ Tsunade's gaze softened with pity. Though Itachi was skilled at hiding his feelings for the most part, his pain was evident in the stiff line of his shoulders as he rose to exit the premises. "I'm sorry, Itachi-kun."_

_ With his hand clenching the doorknob until his knuckles went white, Itachi fought for words. "It is not your fault, nor Sakura's, Tsunade-san. It just…" Unable to finish his sentence, the elder Uchiha sibling disappeared out the door._

=*~*~*=

Kisame gave a low whistle. "Damn…"

Itachi, now seated in the chair by Sakura's bed, said nothing in response as he gazed, unseeing, at the young girl's face.

"This must be…kinda hard for you," Kisame managed at last, breaking the suffocating silence. "Her being sick and all."

"Hn."

"So the scum…he…"

"He and Tsunade-ba were…friends once upon a time; he and Tsunade-ba and Headmaster Jiraiya. It is why he has this job at Hishin Academy."

"But the reason why he hates Sakura-,"

Itachi's obsidian-glass eyes shot to Kisame's, filled with a tightly coiled pain and anger. "Later."

Crimson suffused Kisame's pale-blue face as he took two strides towards the Uchiha and just barely stopped himself from hauling the younger male to his feet by his shirtfront. "Listen," he hissed, anger steaming his words, "I know you've gone through a lot for Sakura's sake, and I can respect that. But Sakura is my friend too. If it's something like this I think-,"

"Guys?"

Kisame turned stiffly, fixing the new arrival, Deidara, with a cold glare. "Yeah?"

"Nothing, I was just going to give Sakura some medicine, yeah. Ignore me…"

"That will not be necessary," Itachi said in his usual deadpan, rising to his feet. "I will go downstairs and see if we still have the humidifier from when Zetsu was sick last year."

Glaring at the Uchiha's retreating back, Kisame pushed past Deidara, growling, "If you think I'm letting you just walk off-,"

Glancing down at the pale, unconscious girl on the bed, Deidara shrugged at his housemates' antics. "I don't know either, Sakura-chan, yeah," he muttered. "I always knew they were nuts…"

Settling himself in the chair Itachi had just vacated, Deidara shook two tablets of Ibuprofen from the bottle and set about trying to wake the girl up.

=*~*~*=

"We're not just ending this here," Kisame growled when he had caught up with Itachi on the second floor. "I want to know just what is eating at you! What happened between Sakura and the snake-scum all those years ago?"

The Uchiha turned jerkily, tense shoulders slowly relaxing as if he had just been through serious inner struggles and come to a decision. "Every so often, Orochimaru-_sensei_," Itachi began, the last word dripping with unadulterated scorn, "fills in his prescription for lithium carbonate."

"What?"

"Lithium carbonate," Itachi repeated. "A mood stabilizer." His obsidian eyes flashed crimson for a second as Itachi fixed his roommate with a grim look. "Since a long time ago, the snake's suffered from severe bipolar disorder. When Sakura was ten, she accidentally messed up one of his 'grandiose experiments' by putting one of the high-power magnets she and her two friends had found in the basement on Orochimaru's main hard drive. We didn't know until later that he had been off his medication, but he blew up at her and chased her through his house with a pair of gardening shears. Afterwards, Tsunade-ba and Sakura moved away, and Orochimaru disappeared to take up a teaching position at Hishin."

"So that…"

Itachi nodded. "That's why the snake hates her so much. She ruined his experiments, nearly forced him into a lawsuit with her mother, and the only job he could find afterwards was here, under Headmaster Jiraiya."

"And Sakura?"

"She can't remember him, or me, or anything relating to that Incident. Her mind repressed those memories…and even if she doesn't remember me, I want those memories to stay buried. I'd rather she left Hishin than put her through that again."

* * *

And there you have it! Orochimaru suffers from acute bipolar disorder and, during an incident in his manic phase, he had a small episode of psychosis where he chased ten-year-old Sakura around with a pair of gardening shears after she accidentally wiped his hard drive with an industrial-strength magnet she found in the basement. I'm not saying that all bipolar people are like this as I'm describing a very severe episode and my experience is limited to stuff my psychology roommate tells me after working at her internship. Put all your fears to rest, everyone. Sakura's precious virginity remains intact to be taken away by Itachi or Deidara or some other member of the Akatsuki dorm...though as this fic is rated T, that definitely won't be showing up here!

Maybe in the sequel...

Ah yes, credit for the reason why Sakura and Orochimaru...ahem...don't get along...goes to my wonderful beta Nichibotsu, who helped me come up with this a long time ago while I was tossing around ideas for Belonging during some PMs we had XD Thanks so much, hon! I finally got to use the idea!!!

Ehehehe...anyway, please review and vote on the poll on my profile. I do love extra input from you guys! Your support of this fic is utterly amazing and awesome and motivating! Also, I may be changing my pen name to Aria Illusi. I'll try to keep you guys updated!

Aria, out.


	18. Selfish Motives

Words might not be enough to apologize...

Three years ago I got caught up in school and Belonging stopped being written. I always meant to come back to it, but never really felt that inspiration that kept me writing and updating Belonging so faithfully every Friday. I got caught up attempting to be published (hasn't happened yet). And then my computer crashed. I lost all the notes I had for this story and all the chapters I'd written. Thankfully they're all still here, but so many story ideas died. If I hadn't spent so much time thinking about Belonging, I might never have tried to finish this. But I remember how it ends, some of the climaxes, etc, so **BELONGING WILL GET FINISHED! **

I'm gonna try to keep up with my Friday updates schedule I had when I first wrote Belonging. And it's certainly Friday SOMEWHERE right now...

Thank my roommate for this chapter. If she hadn't been watching Naruto a week ago, making me reread all my fanfictions, I wouldn't have gotten this done. I'm also working on further chapters for Rose in Glass, Feral Instinct, and possibly Imperial. And thank you for your support over the years where I didn't write anything. I am profoundly grateful.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but if I did...things would be different.

* * *

**Chapter 18: Selfish Motives**

_Sakura…_

He wanted so much to say her name, but the word refused to cross his lips. Her skin was parchment pale with bruise-colored smudges under her eyes. Her face had a light sheen of sweat. A tiny frown wrinkled her brow.

But she slept.

Not the tossing and turning discomfort that Kakuzu had reported when he had come down to a quiet breakfast with the others that morning after spending all night watching over the girl, or the feverish mutterings from yesterday evening that had had Deidara more and more agitated as the hours ticked by. This was a restful sleep. Her fever hadn't broken, but this was the next best thing.

And Hidan refused to wake her from it.

Not even to say her name.

_Jashin…I've been pretty faithful...and this is Sakura. Akatsuki's Sakura._

Her Akatsuki shirt was thrown across the back of a chair, but he had seen her in it enough times to remember how it looked. It was a little big for her, but didn't swallow up her body in a too-childish manner. It had made her look…adorable.

A possessive part of Hidan made him grin, though the expression was strained. Adorable and all theirs

Now...

_Not so childish…_

When Sasori had told her to change into something cooler, she had taken the words to heart. Now, she sported a lime green spaghetti strap top that would have offset her eyes nicely, and a skintight pair of black yoga shorts. No bra. And when she had last turned over onto her stomach, it had been obvious she was wearing a thong.

"If I wasn't so worried about you right now, I'd have done something, seriously," Hidan whispered.

But even with her so dressed, it was the last thing on his mind.

She looked so…so…_delicate_.

Sakura had always been shy around them, getting better over time, but she had always had this vibrancy that made her seem so alive to him. Seeing her now, like this…

"You look…"

_Dead_.

Perfectly preserved, but nevertheless dead, as fragile as a snow flower plucked from the stem. She was too pale, too quiescent, too silent. Even the rise and fall of her chest was too shallow for Hidan's tastes. If he didn't watch carefully, he would have imagined it didn't move at all. That he was sitting at the bedside of Snow White, holding vigil with her corpse.

That was too morbid, even for his tastes.

He wanted to wake her up, see those green eyes focus on him, have her smile under his touch. He wanted Sakura back.

"Wake up…_"_

_Jashin…I haven't prayed to you for something like this before…_ But he didn't care. This was important enough to try everything. Everything he could.

_Sakura…Sakura is more than just one person. She's the…the heart and soul of our dormitory_, he admitted. And it felt good to do it, even if in his own head, to put the concept into sure and concrete words. _It's unbelievable, but in so short a time she's become to mean so much to us. To me. We thought we were getting on just fine before, but now that we have her…I can't imagine life without her. If she left us…_

_We would all fall apart._

_Not that she's dying!_ Hidan amended quickly, because he _had_ been making it sound that way. _She's just…she's just really tired and sick right now, and I think at least some of that is our damn fault. She was so worried about what her Aunt would think of us, and I _know_ that snake bastard must be making her life pretty hellish, and we none of us really noticed how hard she was on herself. We should have known!_

The silver-haired senior knew he wasn't the only one berating himself over that, but he couldn't help his self-recrimination. Some part of him felt like they should have noticed something that said she wasn't feeling her best. They'd noticed she had been looking tired lately, but none of them had really delved into it. They'd chided her to sleep more, have some sugar, but they hadn't followed up.

_So we're paying the price._ Hidan grimaced. _I get that, I do, Jashin. She's part of our dorm, we should have looked out for her. But..._

He sighed, pressing the heel of his hand into his forehead as he bent forward, the ends of his hair brushing Sakura's arm as she slept like a stone. _Don't punish her. Make her better. Please._

"Well…I did my best," Hidan murmured. He reached down into the basin at his feet, wringing out the washcloth that had been soaking up ice cold water until it was merely damp, and placed it gently across Sakura's forehead with a tenderness that would have shocked anyone outside of Akatsuki dorm.

"Hurry up and get well."

* * *

"Any change?"

"She's sleeping," Hidan said tiredly as he slumped into his usual seat at the dining room. "Real sleep, not some fever dream."

"That's great," Kisame breathed, looking relieved. "Last night…

"Yeah."

Both of them remembered how haggard Kakuzu had looked at breakfast, the strain of the night before plain in his eyes as he mechanically ate his way through a bowl of cereal and then disappeared back upstairs to pass out, this time in his own bed. The little he had said about Sakura's state had had the entire group worried, Sasori to the point that the redhead had almost refused to go to school today. It had only been at the convincing of Itachi, who reminded him that if Orochimaru-sensei discovered Sasori had ditched for Sakura they would all be giving the snake scum a clue into how deeply they felt for her, that the red-haired senior had agreed to go to class.

Sakura had been muttering under her breath for a while after Hidan had taken his shift, making the Jashin follower more and more nervous, until a little after ten she had lapsed into a deep sleep.

"Here's lunch," Kisame said so as not to remind either of them how sick Sakura seemed, handing Hidan a tunafish salad sandwich. "Do you think Sakura could wake up for some soup?"

The other male shook his head. "I think sleep's more important than food now, but maybe around four we can wake her and make her eat."

Kisame nodded his agreement and the two of them sat, steadily eating their way through their food in silence. Neither of them felt particularly compelled to talk, especially with their Sakura still sick and unconscious upstairs. Two floors down, the risk of waking her wasn't great, but the girl's illness had placed a grim pall upon the whole building and neither was in the mood for idle chatter.

"I'm gonna go do some homework," Hidan muttered as he got up, "But let me know if anything changes. Seriously." And with a grim look he stalked off.

Kisame sighed, put away his own dish, and made his way upstairs.

* * *

"You've worried everyone," Kisame murmured softly, conversationally. He wouldn't have said a word, knowing how much Sakura needed to sleep, but she seemed so lost in her dreams that he had risked talking. And she had quieted more, as if listening to him from far away, wanting to hear what he said.

"You should have seen them last night…you had Deidara almost in tears." The gill-tattooed senior chuckled a little, able to be amused now that Sakura no longer seemed quite so close to disaster. "You kept having fever dreams, and now that I know what they must have been about…I can't blame him for being afraid."

Kisame's face clouded at the memory.

_"Since a long time ago, the snake's suffered from severe bipolar disorder. When Sakura was ten, she accidentally messed up one of his 'grandiose experiments' by putting one of the high-power magnets she and her two friends had found in the basement on Orochimaru's main hard drive. We didn't know until later that he had been off his medication, but he blew up at her and chased her through his house with a pair of gardening shears."_

Itachi had looked so angry, telling him of what had happened to Sakura six years ago, angry and frustrated. The Uchiha had apparently rescued her, but paid for his actions with the loss of her memories.

"I couldn't have lived that way," Kisame admitted quietly, his gaze resting on the unconscious girl. "I don't know how Itachi manages."

Sakura said nothing; she didn't even move, too deeply caught in the grasp of Hypnos, god of sleep, to answer.

"He loves you, you know."

"I bet he hasn't admitted it, even to himself," Kisame continued when this revelation didn't get Sakura up and blushing like a cherry tomato. "But he really cares the world about you. You should see the way he looks at you sometimes."

The girl remained unresponsive, but Kisame hadn't expected a reply from the comatose girl, and so lapsed into silence as he contemplated her until he wished he had thought to bring a book. The silence was getting oppressive again, and Sakura's lack of movement had begun to evoke a note of paranoia in his thoughts.

"Remember the Rules, candy girl?" he found himself saying to keep back the silence. "You've always wanted to know what they were about, didn't you. You seemed so freaked out that first day that I wanted to make sure we had some ground rules about you. And, to be honest," he added with a shark like grin, "I could tell a couple of the guys were interested in you and I wanted everyone to behave a little."

Kisame chuckled. That description hardly gave his thoughts justice. He'd seen the looks and hadn't wanted the girl to bolt from their dorm and demand to be transferred to the Konoha or Suna dormitory in the first week. That would have meant the snake coming back, and the girl had looked…like fun. Amusing. Someone much more worth having around than Orochimaru. And the rules had been born.

"There's 'no excessive pervertedness around you,' which Hidan violated on your second day here," Kisame ticked off his fingers, "Though you've gotta know better than to run around in a towel, candy girl. You were practically asking for some bad karma to come your way," he admonished.

"No kissing unless you solicit it, that one Itachi broke over lunch once, remember? I know how girls feel about kisses and all that. I figured you'd have gone running for the hills."

"No one gets to kidnap you for lots of private time without any of the others knowing," Kisame continued, "which we put down partly because we didn't want you running off and partly because everyone here is really possessive and jealous."

"There's-," a bang from downstairs and hurried feet and half-hushed voices made Kisame pause, "The rest of our dorm, back from school. I'd better go let them know that you're sleeping. Let you know the rest of the Rules later."

So saying, Kisame bent forward, brushing a gentle kiss to Sakura's forehead before. Pulling away, he flushed, muttering that he was getting sentimental, and disappeared out the door.

* * *

"She's sleeping, you fools!"

The whisper-hiss had the magical effect of silencing the cascade of boys that had flooded through the common room until it would have been possible to hear a pin drop. Even Naruto's mouth snapped shut like a steel trap at Kisame's words, leaving the tall senior supremely satisfied with the result

_Candy girl has such influence with these people…_

"She's finally sleeping, actually getting some rest, so if you're going to stick around, keep _quiet_," he admonished, fixing them all with serious looks. "I, personally, don't think she's up for having visitors and it's not going to be really amusing if you're up there. She's completely unresponsive."

"But, Sakura…"

"We're not going," Sasuke declared, his obsidian eyes challenging as they swept across the residents of Akatsuki dorm, talking over Naruto's plaintive words. "Naruto-dobe and I aren't leaving."

At his words, each member of the dorm reacted according to his personality. Kisame merely shrugged in resignation, Hidan swore under his breath. Kakuzu merely narrowed his eyes, but wondered privately if telling them they would be charged admittance into the Akatsuki dorm would make them go away. Itachi fixed his younger brother with a sharp glare, his eyes almost crimson with anger at the intrusion, while Sasori got to his feet, as if ready to bodily throw the two out. Zetsu merely stared, his gaze penetrating, as Deidara growled, "No. If Sakura was awake, maybe your being here would do some good, but there's obviously nothing you can do right now."

"That's where you're wrong," Sasuke replied in a voice like the edges of knife blades. "Naruto and I have been friends with Sakura since we were six. We've been around her when she was sick lots of times before. We know how she reacts to being ill, and we know what she will and will not eat."

His pale face became more challenging as he spoke, his chin rising as he gazed at them all with fierce protectiveness for one of his best friends. "Sakura likes spicy foods for when she's sick, though she hates them any other time. It seems to wake her up. Also, she loves sweets and she's going to have a real craving for them when she's a little better than now. And she cries. She gets really fussy when she's ill and has a tendency to want to cry over anything. It's not unusual. We know what she's like," Sasuke said sharply, his hands balling into fists. "You're going to let us stay, and you're going to do it because…We. Can. Help."

A resounding silence met his words, like daggers that he had flung at them. They knew Sakura as well as any who had lived with her for months, but Sasuke and Naruto…they had been her friends from childhood. They knew her better than any of them, even Itachi. And the contrast was sharply painful.

"It appears," Sasori said at last, his tone soft and strained, "they have a point. I am of the mind to let them stay."

"As am I."

Itachi's face was a picture of pain, but determined nonetheless. "We cannot be selfish. For Sakura, we cannot be selfish."

A look passed between the Uchiha brothers then, fraught with meaning and undertones too convoluted for any of the others to fully unravel, and Itachi gave an infinitesimal nod.

"Right."

With a nod of acknowledgment to the assembled Akatsuki upperclassmen, Sasuke disappeared in the direction of the kitchen, a serious and quiet Naruto in tow. A thick, uncomfortable silence blanketed the room they left.

Sasori got to his feet. "I'm going to get Sakura more medications."

"I'll go with you," Kisame added quickly.

"Homework."

"Laundry."

In a very short time, the common room was empty as each member of Akatsuki dorm went about, taking with him the discomfort born of Sasuke's words.

* * *

Kakuzu stared at his Lit essay, his mind empty of the topic he should write about. The page in front of him was blank; not even an outline had graced the white sheet.

He prided himself on his knowledge, he worked at a firm already in spite of still being in high school, and used it to his advantage even to occasionally get pocket money from his housemates. But he had been beat by a sophomore and he knew it. Sasuke and Naruto would know more information about the rosy-haired girl than he thought he could ever gather, and the thought rankled.

Or perhaps it was knowing how little he _did_ know of her. How little Akatsuki dorm as a whole featured into the timeline of her life.

With an angry growl, Kakuzu got out his laptop. Maybe it would be easier to write his essay electronically and print it out later instead of doing it by hand.

* * *

The washing machines whirred, filling the tiny laundry room with noise, but it wasn't enough. It couldn't silence his thoughts.

"We really don't know that much about her. **We know nothing.**" The words were cutting, hard to admit to himself, but Zetsu had never been someone to be less than frank with himself. "The last few months have been so different, so…**Wonderful****_. _**But to be honest, how much could it mean to her? Is it just her becoming familiar with guys again? Or…**Does it mean as much to her as it did to us?**"

Zetsu couldn't say, and the quiet shush of the washing machines was no answer.

* * *

"Nothing, yeah."

Deidara rolled over onto his other side, his blond hair falling to cover his eyes. He was in the little study area that no one in Akatsuki ever used these days, lying curled up on the window seat. No one liked being near it because once upon a time it had stood right next to Orochimaru's room, the one room no one _really_ ever used in the house.

Now that the snake was gone…

_Maybe someone else can take it,_ Deidara thought idly as he tried to distract himself from his melancholy. _If we take any more students…_

The thought of someone else joining the Akatsuki dorm was a strange one, and somewhat unpleasant. He didn't really want to share Sakura with anyone else.

_No one. I…love her._

"And I know her so little, yeah."

* * *

"Aniki."

Sasuke wasn't particularly surprised. His brother had always felt something for Sakura, and Sasuke had known it even as a little boy. It was obvious, at least to him, that Itachi's feelings hadn't waned at all in the intervening years where Sakura had been going to an all girls' school. And seeing his aniki here in Sakura's bedroom, obviously the worse for wear was…unsettling.

"Otouto. Naruto."

Itachi got to his feet. "I'll go."

The feeling of discomfort magnified tenfold, itching the back of Sasuke's neck as his brother made for the door. Sasuke had made it plain to all members of the Akatsuki dorm that he and Naruto were the first and foremost experts in Sakura's life, having been with her the longest, even more so than his brother. And Itachi was taking it hard.

"Here, dobe. See if you can wake her up. If she's not feeling up for it, at least get her to drink something if you can," Sasuke ordered before following Itachi out the door, having surrendered Sakura's dinner tray to his best friend.

In the hall, the tension between them was no less, especially with the sound of Naruto quietly trying to cajole Sakura to wakefulness bleeding through the closed door at their back.

"Itachi-niisan…"

"I hate him."

"Hn?"

"Orochimaru," Itachi spat, his tone tight with anger. "I hate him."

Sasuke nodded but said nothing, knowing his brother well enough to know when it was better to keep quiet.

"Sakura…Sakura _forgot_ me," the older Uchiha's words trembled with palpable rage and hurt and pain and anger, enough to swallow the whole world, emotions he usually kept locked away somewhere they couldn't get out. "She forgot me because of what that _bastard_ did to her. He severed any connection Sakura and I had, otouto," Itachi hissed. "And I hate him for it."

"I hate…I hate seeing her like this…"

Sasuke had overheard, conjectured, and guessed at bits and pieces of what had happened during the flu Sakura had had when they were younger, when she no longer remembered Itachi and had feverish dreams. And this fever bout of Sakura's now was bringing to the surface memories his brother would rather not recall.

The discomfort grew. Sasuke felt a bit disgusted, the tactic that had allowed them to stay at Akatsuki dorm now seeming selfish and overbearing. He had basically rubbed his closeness to Sakura in the faces of guys who were developing genuine feelings of affection for his friend, not to mention reminding his brother of what he'd lost because of Orochimaru.

Swallowing his feeling of revulsion, Sasuke grimaced. "I'm sorry seems like too little to say."

An arm, his brother's, wrapped around his head, resting there a moment before Itachi let him go. "It's not you. I don't mind you."

They stood in silence for a while until, "I hate it when you're so forgiving like that," Sasuke grumbled.

Itachi shrugged, but Sasuke was relieved to see that a small smile on his brother's face. "I know."

* * *

"Sasori. Man. Slow down."

Kisame knew he was pretty good with reckless driving, but the redhead was beginning to scare even him. They were going over sixty miles an hour on a poorly lit, local street, at twilight. There were probably little old grannies around here walking their dogs, and Sasori was definitely going to be running them over.

"I'm not letting you drive again if you keep this up," Kisame growled as they sped down the road.

The redhead didn't show much indication of having heard him, though the speedometer indicated that he had slowed to a slightly more sedate fifty miles an hour.

With a silent groan, Kisame resigned himself to Sasori's driving, and promised that next time he was going to be the one behind the wheel. Sasori driving while pissed made him think the guy was channeling some racecar driver from a past life.

* * *

"Sakura…Sakura-chan…"

A familiar voice was calling her out of the depths of the darkness, a voice that spoke of comfort and warmth and caring, a voice that made her want to wrap herself in the speaker's arms until all the pain and aching in her body went away.

"Sakura?"

Her pale-jade eyes slowly opened, the cloudiness of sleep slowly burning away as she focused on the blond at her side. His bright cerulean eyes shone with concern and relief as she returned to the world of the conscious. "Na-Naruto?"

"How are you feeling, Sakura-chan?" the fox-faced boy asked, his voice gentle. "Think you can sit up?"

"I…I think so," the girl replied shakily, trying to smile. "I feel…awful…"

"I know, it must suck," Naruto said consolingly as he helped her into a sitting position, every gesture kind. "Sasuke and I made you something we thought you could eat. We knew you probably hadn't had anything in a day or so and you've gotta keep your strength up."

"You…" she tried to chuckle and groaned as her body protested even that small thing. "You sound like my mom."

"Thanks, Sakura."

With a soft smile, Sakura let Naruto put the tray on her lap and breathed in the scent of the spicy beef broth with relief. She normally hated spicy things, but when she was sick they seemed to revitalize her better than anything else. Trust her best friends to think about her and care for her so well.

"Thank you so much, Naruto. Tell Sasuke I said thanks too." And then she was eating with as much gusto as she could considering her reduced appetite, the broth and stewed vegetables and rice washed down with long sips of cold water. She only finished half the bowl, but it was a bowl more of soup than she had had in twenty-four hours.

"And dessert."

"Dessert?" Sakura asked, her eyes lighting up as Naruto handed her a small bowl of green tea ice cream. Her favorite. "Naruto!"

"Do we know you, or do we know you?" was his only response, fully gratified by the smile that lit her features as she stuck the spoon into her mouth and hummed her pleasure.

The ice cream she finished.

"How did…" A yawn forced its way from her and her eyelids fluttered, sudden sleepiness striking as she put aside her ice cream bowl. "How…" she tried again.

"Later, Sakura-chan," Naruto murmured. "Later. Sleep now. You need to get better."

"No."

The blond raised an eyebrow as Sakura's hand slid out of the covers and latched onto his sleeve. "Don't go."

"Uh…but the dishes…"

"When have you cared?" she asked, sounding petulant in her sleepiness, like a fussy five-year-old. "Stay."

"O-Okay…"

"Here. With me." Her hand imperiously gestured to her bed.

_I am going to get in so much trouble for this…_

Naruto was not clueless. He wasn't stupid. He could tell how Sakura's housemates felt about her, and while he was a possessive teenager, he wanted Sakura to be happy most of all. And…she was, even with the weird upperclassmen that populated this dormitory. They were gonna tear him to shreds if he listened to Sakura and joined her in bed but…

_She was mine and Sasuke's first_.

With an optimistic shrug and the hope that he could get out of the situation later, he slid into bed with his best friend, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as she cuddled into his body.

"H-hey Naru…Naruto," Sakura mumbled, her words punctuated by yawns, "Can you…'member when we did this…as kids?"

"Yeah, Sakura, I remember."

"You're…" she chuckled softly, "Bigger now…"

Naruto grinned. "Thanks."

"Comfy…"

And then she was asleep.

With a sigh that was part affection, part resignation, Naruto got comfortable. He might pay for it later, but for now he was going to do whatever Sakura asked. Her warmth soaked into his side and, with the stress of the day flowing out of him, Naruto felt his eyes close.

In seconds, he had joined her in dreamland.

* * *

I hope this proves unequivocally that I have NOT abandoned Belonging in spite of the three-year hiatus that inadvertently happened. This story WILL get finished and I'm going to do my best to update every Friday as I did when I started writing this story, so please be patient with me. Thanks to everyone who reviewed this story over the years, you have made this chapter possible in spite of all the odds. Thank you so much.

Also...anyone know how to make specialized line breaks NOT disappear when you upload stories to the site?

And please feed the muse by reviewing, your reviews definitely helped this story come back to life ^^

Aria, out.


	19. Princess in Slumber

I did it! Haha you have no idea how excited I am to know that I kept up with my Friday schedule this week! This chapter isn't nearly as long as I wanted it to be, but I found a good stopping point that I liked and hopefully the next chapter will be longer. I felt like this one was fighting me a little and I'm kind of ready to move on from this stage to something more exciting...hopefully starting from the next chapter things will pick up a little.

Thank you for your reviews, I'm so happy that people still remember this story after that long hiatus! I got quite a few reviews saying just that, so thank you all! If you remember from before, I used to award scene requests to reviewers and I'm thinking of picking that up again. I think if I remember, the 650th reviewer gets a little prize as soon as I can work it into the story.

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Naruto. If I did, this would aaaaaaaall be canon...

* * *

**Chapter 19: Princess in Slumber**

It was warm, warmer than he would have liked it, but so very comforting that Naruto found he didn't want to get up. He had been having an amazing dream, the details of which he could not clearly recall, but now he could feel consciousness slowly dragging him into reality. Naruto burrowed deeper into the covers, reveling in their softness and the pervading scent of moonflowers.

_Mmm…Sakura-chan smells like moonflowers…_

…

_Sakura-chan. Last night._

Naruto catapulted out of bed, tumbling out onto Sakura's floor with one hand clamped over his mouth in case he yelped when he landed. The thud of his contact to the ground was solid, painful, and loud, but Sakura remained unconscious, curled up in a nest of blankets and pillows. Naruto, on the other hand, was flat on his face, wondering if he'd ever had a ruder awakening in his life.

Somewhere behind his head, a cell phone buzzed.

Struggling to sit up, Naruto swiveled around and snagged his cell, scooting farther away from Sakura so as not to disturb her when he picked up.

"Yo."

"Dobe, you'd better get out of there or you're about to be a dead man."

Naruto glanced to and fro nervously, his ears cocked for footsteps, but he heard nothing. Feeling a bit silly at having been so taken in, he glared at the phone in his hand and grumbled, "I don't hear anyone coming, teme."

"Of course you don't," Sasuke huffed, irritation obvious in every nuance of his tone. "I called you before my brother and his friends said they would get you."

"Get me?"

Sasuke shook his head in frustration. _Argh! If only you'd been awake!_

* * *

_"Hey, Itachi…oh. You still here?"_

_ Sasuke leveled a calm gaze at his brother's roommate, unfazed by Kisame's cool tone. Of all the upperclassmen of Akatsuki dorm besides his brother, Kisame was the one Sasuke interacted with most. There was a mutual sense of wariness, but it was tempered by respect._

_So Sasuke didn't do more than give a curt nod in greeting as he said, "I was going to leave as soon as Naruto came back out with Sakura's dinner."_

"_How long's he been in there?" Kisame grumbled. "Feels like way longer than it needs to be, and Sasori said that candy girl needs to take this fever medication."_

"_Kisame's right, otouto. Naruto _has_ been in there for a considerable length of time..."_

_The trio of young men glanced at Sakura's door with expressions of varying degrees of concern. There came only silence; a deep, pervading silence that refused to become the cheerful tones of the blond boy, or the even more desired light murmur of Sakura._

"_What are you three doing?"_

_The soft question made them, even Itachi, jump and swivel to meet the gaze of the redhead standing at the top of stairs with a mildly annoyed look on his face._

"_Well?"_

_Kisame shrugged, offering Sasori the only explanation he could. "Naruto went in there with dinner for Sakura and hasn't come out yet."_

_Sasori's eyes narrowed infinitesimally, a gesture that would have gone unnoticed if the people watching hadn't been Sasuke (who had similar experiences with his brother), Kisame (same as Sasuke), and Itachi (who, aside from being naturally very observant, also used the same gesture with remarkable frequency). "Are we just going to stand outside the door and wait until he exits then?"_

"_We hadn't decided yet," Itachi responded a touch more acerbically than he would have if the matter hadn't involved Sakura._

_Sasori contemplated this answer in silence for a second or two, and then purposefully headed for the door. Everyone else made some sort of abortive gesture, as one and all decided in the same moment that if Sakura was going to be disturbed it ought to be by someone else (each envisioning themselves in that enviable position), but Sasori had been standing closest to the door by that point and the door opened under his hand._

_Everyone but Sasuke (who inwardly groaned and covered his eyes with a hand at the sight) stiffened._

_Sakura looked angelically sweet, her rose-blush hair spilling across her cheeks and pillow, the contrast of it against her pale skin making her look ethereal and delicate. Her lips, the same strawberry shade as her hair, were parted slightly in sleep and invitingly full. Her posture was childish, curled up as though she cuddled a favorite stuffed toy._

_Except that her "toy" wasn't a toy at all but a seventeen-year-old blond boy who was starfished across most of her bed and completely unconscious._

_If he hadn't been utterly oblivious to the strawberry-haired girl in sleep, he would have been a greasy smear of dead in an eye blink._

Sakura_ however, was comfortably cuddled up to Naruto's side, her head pillowed on his shoulder and one of her legs thrown over his knee. As they watched, Sakura made a quiet noise in the back of her throat, a sound between a yawn and a soft mewl of happiness, and shifted slightly to get more comfortable._

_Sasuke hastily shot past the others to grab the tray of dinner on the bedside table and came back out, closing the door behind him before any of the Akatsuki males decided that, oblivious or not, Naruto deserved to be a greasy smear of dead anyway. The things he did for his best friend._

"_Sakura obviously does not need to be disturbed right now," he said more quickly than he had intended. It made him sound nervous, which was sort of true but not something he had wanted the others to know. There was enough annoyance radiating off of them to put his back up. "And she doesn't look like she needs any fever medications right now, so maybe we should all go downstairs."_

_Small mercies. At least he hadn't made his last statement sound like a question._

_It was Kisame who answered then, glancing at the redhead and his roommate with a tinge of apprehension in his eyes. "Sounds right. Candy girl's obviously fine as she is and we don't want to wake her up. She needs to recover."_

_His last statement seemed to wake the other two up from their reverie, and they headed downstairs as if they had left the door closed, seeing nothing._

_Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief, cut short when Kisame turned from the stairs and stopped in front of him, blocking his path._

"_I'm only saying this once, for Sakura," the senior said casually, the sharpness in his eyes giving lie to his easy-going tone. "That kid gets tonight only, and if he's not out and gone by seven tomorrow morning, I tell the others he slept there. Got it?"_

_Without bothering to wait for a response, Kisame turned and disappeared down the stairs, leaving Sasuke on the landing with a dinner tray in his hands feeling distantly afraid for Naruto's life._

* * *

"Just…get out of there, dobe. Get out now or I'm not going to be responsible for your beating, and I am _not_ going to drive you to the hospital."

"Okay, okay, I'm going," Naruto grumped. He still didn't exactly see what Sasuke's problem was, but something in his best friend's voice had tipped him off that perhaps he ought to do as Sasuke said and leave.

With a last glance at Sakura; she seemed unfazed by his leaving, her breathing deep and even, the color coming back to her cheeks at last; he crept away. Tiptoeing down the stairs took little and less time, and soon he was on the ground floor.

Kisame stood, leaning back against the doorjamb of the front door, a shark-like grin on his face. The expression was hardly comforting, and woke Naruto as much as a medium-sized mug of coffee would have.

"Hello…"

"Hello, Naruto-kun," Kisame responded genially enough. His expression, once again, gave lie to his casual tone. His face was chilling. "Leaving?"

A nervous shiver snaked its way down Naruto's back. "Yeah…"

"Good."

Kisame pushed the door open with his foot and moved out of the way, letting the blond pass him unharmed before closing the door with a click that was somehow more ominous than if he had slammed it shut.

Standing out on the doorstep, Naruto glanced over his shoulder and gulped.

Sasuke had _not_ been kidding.

* * *

"Alright, who's on rotation today?" Kisame asked over breakfast, looking like himself and not at all like a shark-faced man who had been menacing underclassmen before seven in the morning.

"Me, and Zetsu and Itachi, yeah," Deidara supplied.

"Let us know at once if there's any change," was Kisame's only response before he got up from the table to put away his things.

Deidara looked down at his cereal bowl, the colorful flakes turning into a rainbow mush in the milk, and compared this to how breakfast usually progressed with Sakura around. There was conversation and laughter, the smell of toast or eggs or pancakes in the air, and a sort of bright cheerfulness that lingered over the table as they good-naturedly chattered over their food. He swirled his spoon around the rainbow mulch in his bowl and frowned. His breakfast was about the only colorful thing this morning. Everyone was quiet and broody but somehow all _here_ seated at the table. Before Sakura, they had taken their breakfasts wherever they felt like it. After, they had taken breakfast together.

_Now_…

Together but without Sakura, her absence was keenly felt and placed a grey pall over the entire morning. With a grimace, he let his spoon drop back into the bowl and got up to discard the lot. He wasn't in the mood for food any more.

Kisame passed him on the way out of the kitchen, collecting up the other dorm members who were headed to class, throwing a, "If anything changes…" and a serious look over his shoulder before jogging to catch up to Sasori.

The redhead was quieter than usual, silent enough to rival Itachi this morning.

As he did with Itachi in a similar mood, Kisame let the others keep walking, slowing his pace to match the redhead who seemed too lost in thought to notice until they were several steps behind the others. Kisame waited a couple more minutes until they were about halfway to the main school buildings and out of the others' earshot before muttering a little awkwardly, "Ryo for your thoughts…not that I can't guess what they're about."

"Sakura is…comfortable with us," Sasori replied somewhat disjointedly, supporting Kisame's assumption. He was thinking about last night. "She has grown comfortable with us over time. I…I had forgotten…"

"Forgotten Sakura had friends before us? Friends who are guys?" the gill-tattooed senior supplied with rough sympathy before admitting, "Me too."

The redhead's brown eyes widened as he glanced at the other male before they looked resolutely away. "Sakura has others…"

And really, that was the heart of the matter.

He, and perhaps all of the Akatsuki, had forgotten that Sakura had had male friends before them. Sasuke's speech the night before had been a rude awakening, but seeing Sakura so comfortable around Naruto had been the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.

A pang of mingled anger and pain struck him like a blow to the solar plexus, the very memory of that moment turning his stomach. In that second he felt every bit of anger he felt towards the others, the anger he had suppressed because he knew their reasoning. But the unfairness devoured him like a burning acid, and the words spilled out before he could have stopped them. He didn't want to.

"Let me stay home tomorrow."

Kisame glanced over at the redhead, surprised by the sudden seemingly non-sequitur. He was more surprised to find Sasori's mahogany eyes trained to his face and hot with a fire that seemed out of place. He had always considered Itachi to be the one with volatile tendencies carefully hidden behind a calm exterior, while Sasori had always struck him as the one with a truly icy demeanor.

_I guess I was wrong._

"Sasori…it's not that I don't understand," he began in a conciliatory tone that surprised even him.

"I _know_ I'm supposed to stay in the snake's class so that he doesn't think I have any feelings toward Sakura. If he got wind of any hint of affection on my part it might mean that he'll look closer at the others and discover how close we all are. I _get_ that," Sasori ground out, his eyes still flashing angrily as his hands clenched into fists. "But I have as much right to stay at home and care for Sakura as the others. You know I do. One day…one day can't hurt."

The other senior stared at the unexpected outburst as Sasori matched his gaze, still glaring. The rest of the dorm had long since left them behind and they were alone on the walkway to the Akatsuki living quarters. For a moment Kisame found himself being put in mind of a small dog challenging a gigantic mastiff…before dashing the thought from his head and grimacing.

"Don't make me regret this," he growled. "Tomorrow. One day. And for a while you'd better act like you don't particularly care for Sakura in school. The rest of us don't have classes with the snake scum so we can avoid him. You aren't so lucky, so I hope you have acting skills that are worth a damn."

Sasori nodded solemnly, his dark eyes gleaming with muted triumph.

As Kisame stalked off, running a hand through his hair in a gesture of frustration, he hoped he wouldn't have a reason to regret his decision.

* * *

"I'm going upstairs to Sakura, yeah."

"Hn," Itachi replied in a lackluster monotone. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Deidara give him a curious glance, then easily shrug off his behavior in favor of sitting at Sakura's side. Itachi didn't blame him, or even mind. In his case, he would have done the same. But at the same time there was a flash of anger, of jealousy. _Deidara_ hadn't witnessed Sakura's casual comfortableness with Naruto the night before. Kisame had kept Sasori and himself from saying anything to the others, but for a second Itachi wanted to. Let someone else feel what he felt now.

Deidara, blissfully oblivious of the emotional maelstrom occurring downstairs, padded to Sakura's room with a plate of dry toast, a small pat of butter, and some orange juice. Chances were, Sakura was going to be utterly unconscious and in no state to eat, but he had to be hopeful. So it was with some surprise that he opened the door to her room to find her viridian eyes fluttering open. He nearly lost his grip on the tray.

"S-Sakura-chan!"

She moaned in pain, her head hunching down as she tiredly tried to drag the covers over her head at the noise. A flash of horrified contriteness made Deidara flush as he quickly crossed the space between them, putting down the tray in such a haphazard manner that it was only by luck that he put it on the bedside table rather than empty air.

"Sorry, Sakura-chan, sorry," he whispered hurriedly. "I didn't mean…"

The face that popped out of the sheets then was paler than he remembered, weary and unhappy and somehow haunted. A flutter, this time of worry, curled Deidara's gut. "Sakura…"

"I hurt," she whispered, the words reaching him like the brush of snowflakes caught on a breath of wind, insubstantial at best. "Everything…hurts."

She even sounded out of breath, her throat so obviously dry that the blond felt his own constrict in sympathy. "Please, Sakura…how can I help?"

An arm reached out for the glass of water, and before she could even voice her desires, Deidara was there, the cup in hand one hand and the other arm wrapped around her shoulders as he propped her up. The glass was cool against her lips, her skin hot against his, and to the blond it was as if time had stopped and left them in a pocket of stillness as she sipped quietly until she was done. With infinite care, he gently helped her lie down again, and turned to put the cup away.

When he turned back, she was once again asleep.

_Oh, Sakura…_

With a disappointed sigh – how many minutes had he snatched with the rose-haired girl awake? – Deidara pulled out his phone from his pocket, fully intending on texting his housemates to tell them of this change. Sakura had woken up on her own accord, without anyone trying to bring her back to consciousness. It was important. And yet…

For a long moment Deidara sat and stared at his phone…before slipping it back into his pocket.

No, he wouldn't tell the others. He'd lived with them for a couple of years, he _knew_ what they were like. As soon as they knew Sakura had woken up, they might very well try to come home and-,

_And that would put an end to any time I have with her like this._

Besides, if they barged in just because she woke up, it would probably set her a day back in recovery because she wasn't getting proper rest. And Deidara obviously couldn't condone something like that. In fact, if the other Akatsuki had been aware, they might have thanked him for his consideration.

With a wry smile at his own self-delusion, Deidara tenderly brushed a stray lock of strawberry-cream hair from Sakura's face and settled down for a morning of watching over the sleeping girl.

He came awake with a start, a hand on his shoulder.

For a split second, Deidara was utterly disoriented, not sure what class he had fallen asleep in, or why his desk had somehow magically grown sheets. It wasn't until Itachi shook him a second time that he realized he was in Sakura's room and had been watching over her instead of in class.

"It's past noon. Lunch is downstairs."

"Um…yeah."

Deidara mechanically got to his feet and exited Sakura's room. Itachi watched him go dispassionately, or as dispassionately as he could be considering it was the second time in less than twenty-four hours that he had discovered someone asleep with Sakura.

Very slowly, Itachi let his fists uncurl, glad that Deidara hadn't noticed them.

With a sigh he took the seat by Sakura's bed that the blond had just vacated, and gazed down into the face of the sleeping girl.

She looked much better than she had the day before, her skin not quite so pale and translucent, the shadows under her eyes less bruise-like. But she slept still, and that truly worried Itachi, bringing back memories of what had happened the last time he'd seen her like this.

The Uchiha could remember her sobbing brokenly as she tossed and turned amid sheets dampened by her sweat, her quiet cries like knives reminding him of how he had failed to save her. As if hearing the melancholy bent to his thoughts, Sakura turned in her sleep, a tiny sigh escaping her lips. Itachi gently brushed the roseate strands that fell against her cheeks away with fingers that may have trembled just slightly.

All this time, for days, they had cared for her. And for all that time he hadn't touched her. Having her back had been like a gift, being able to hold her or talk to her a treasure. He missed being able to do so like a physical ache that lodged under his breastbone and dug into his heart little by little. He had forgotten what it was like, being without her, after the months spent with her here.

"Sakura…if I could have you here and well…"

But she wasn't, so he banished the thought in frustration, a talent he'd acquired under the tutelage of his father. It was useless to dwell on things like that. Instead, he reached out to touch her again.

She whimpered as his fingers neared her face, causing Itachi to snatch his hand back, and irrational fear flooding him. It was ridiculous and impossible but his heart was pounding as if he'd run a mile in five minutes flat because it was almost as if his very touch was causing her pain. Sakura's face was a picture of unhappiness that sliced him to the core, making his own pale face paler as the blood drained from it.

"Sakura?"

She was shaking her head now, the pale pink strands of hair brushing her pillow like a constant susurration as she made soft, muted noises of pain. Breathing grew shallow, and then finally when Itachi was on the verge of calling the others because Sakura was definitely in need of help and he felt on the edge of panic, she whispered, "Oro-hakuba…"

The fear was suddenly gone, replaced by a terrifying anger. He knew now what was going on. Sakura hadn't been getting worse in her illness, she was dreaming, and dreaming of the last thing he wanted her to dream. With a grim look on his face, he took her shoulders, shaking her with gentle firmness. She had to snap out of it.

"P-please…I'm sorry…"

Gritting his teeth, Itachi shook her a little harder, but to no avail. Sakura remained very much in the grasp of her nightmare, and he was forced to sit there and listen as she relived that horrible moment in her childhood. Itachi remembered what little he had been there to witness, and had pieced together the rest over time.

He had heard from his mother that Sakura was out visiting Orochimaru, her mother's friend, and it had made him nervous. He hadn't been able to explain why then, but the Uchiha wondered if just maybe he'd suspected a little that the man wasn't nearly as stable as everyone believed. Or perhaps the way he looked at people, as if they were subjects he might want to use for his experiments, had put Itachi on his guard.

At any rate, Itachi had asked for permission and gotten it to go bring Sakura back as it was nearly time for dinner anyway.

He had hurried.

In his private thoughts, Itachi always wondered, if he had hurried more he could have stopped some of what had happened. But hurry as he had, he'd arrived just in time to see Sakura scramble into the woodsy area by Orochimaru's house, a look of abject terror frozen to her face. Confused and worried, Itachi had stepped forward just as Orochimaru came snarling around the side of the house with a massive pair of gardening shears in his hands and a truly vicious snarl on his face as he spat epithets at the little girl who was already concealed by the bushes.

In a split second decision, Itachi had deliberately darted into the wooded area and started making obvious rustling noises so that Orochimaru followed him instead, and then rushed back to the last point he had seen Sakura. Her trail hadn't been hard to follow, but he had made too much noise chasing her, because the moment he emerged from the brush, she gave a muffled shriek and tumbled back into a ditch, her head striking a log at the bottom.

Sitting on the chair by Sakura's bed in the Akatsuki dorm, Itachi found he had gripped his knees so tightly as he recalled the past that there were bound to be large bruises there in the morning.

But lost in remembering, Itachi had passed the half hour of Sakura's nightmare. She slept peacefully now, her chest rising and falling rhythmically as he watched. His princess. His relief.

The bed creaked under his hand as he leaned forward, gazing at that beloved face, the one he had missed for so long. Sakura's breathing deepened, her lips parting, and suddenly it was too much, too tempting, and Sakura herself too sweet for words. He closed the gap of inches between them.

Her lips were soft and gentle, not at all dry after days of sleeping and minimal hydration, a forbidden fruit that he hadn't meant to take but savored anyway, loving and hating himself for it. But not enough to stop. His fingers fisted in the sheets as he held himself still, his lips tenderly brushing hers, the rose petals of her mouth moving against his so that he could almost believe she was kissing him back, lavishing tenderness. And then they _were_ moving against his, sweet as syrup and delightfully innocent as she pressed her lips back against his. He savored it, too busy enjoying to even process that Sakura was awake, too taken in by longing for this something that he had craved.

He only pulled away when he was out of breath, far too soon for his liking. But she had stolen it all away, the very air from his lungs, with her mesmerizing kiss.

Sakura's eyes fluttered open, glazed with sleep but definitely conscious once more, and the way she looked at him with unfathomable affection rocked him to his soul. They were so green, like jade pieces carved smooth and opaque and delicate, just a touch confused and curious as those enchanting lips of hers parted on a word filled with question and realization and wonder.

"…'Tachi-nii?"

* * *

Yes, I suck. Very much. But in my defense, it DID make a good stopping point, right? Right guys? Put down the kunai, guys... Anyway, stay tuned for the next chapter ^^ And I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I shouldn't have put a cliffhanger there...

Please feed the muse reviews, it saved this fic and she gives me the ideas...

Aria, out.


	20. Shifting Loyalties

Chapter still on schedule! So tired! Haha I'm feeling a little ridiculous right now so I'm glad I can go to bed after posting this.

Disclaimer: I just want to take the characters out to play! I swear I'll give them back...

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 20: Shifting Loyalties**

Itachi's eyes widened, his heart stopped as every fiber of his being trembled. This had happened once already; he did not know if he could stand her not remembering him again. The pain of that moment had left a wound long ignored to open anew, and he was already so raw with emotion from the last couple of days.

"It…it _is_ you. I'd…I'd forgotten…"

Those words sent his breath out in a sigh of desperate relief, of surcease from remembering alone.

"So…you do remember me?"

Sakura nodded gingerly, cautiously, as if her body still ached from the pain of being sick. "I do…sort of. I remember that we were friends…you were there for me." Her smile of gratitude had Itachi gripping her sheets again in an attempt not to pull her straight into his arms and hold her until he was satisfied. "You were always looking after us…"

"Is that…is that all?" He hated asking but he had to know, though he didn't think she had remembered either Orochimaru's attack or any sign of his feelings for her by the way she was reacting. Her next words confirmed his thoughts.

"For the most part. But…I do remember being happy with you." And Sakura gave him a shy smile.

For a second he was filled with such conflicting emotions that it was stifling. The elation that she _did_ remember him, the searing ache that she remembered him only as a comforting older brother figure. And the cold relief that she didn't remember Orochimaru. Because that would have killed him.

A warm, dry hand curled around one of his, jerking Itachi back to this reality, to the girl who he had loved for so long, and she was smiling back at him in a way that made his heart beat too fast, made him hope. And he hadn't allowed himself to hope for this in so long, not truly, that it was almost a physical ache in his chest. His hand squeezed hers, a gesture almost more intimate than a kiss because it spoke of a meeting of minds rather than bodies. Perhaps she hadn't remembered him all the way yet, but she remembered. That was enough.

"I am…very happy you remember me, Sakura."

The roseate-haired girl frowned slightly then, her brow crinkling in what could only be discontent. "You called me Sakura-chan when you were little…do you not want to call me that any more?"

Itachi managed not to blink in surprise, though his raised eyebrow of curiosity was a beat late as he forced himself to process. "I…I do."

Sakura smiled. "Please?"

"I am very happy you remember me…Sakura-chan."

The girl shivered and her smile grew just a little, her eyes warming in a way that made the Uchiha heir's heart squeeze. She had no idea what she did to him. No idea at all.

It was a perfect moment, and it couldn't last. With a groan, Sakura closed her eyes again, and Itachi noticed that a light sheen of sweat had ghosted across her cheeks while he had been preoccupied. Instantly alert, he was leaning over her with a glass of water, the lines on his face deepening in worry.

"Sakura…Sakura-chan, tell me what's wrong."

"Just…just nauseous. Thirsty. Hungry but not," Sakura gritted out as she rode out a wave of dizziness and stomach roiling that was about half a day's walk away from enjoyable. "It's because I haven't eaten much in the last however long I was out-,"

"Three days?"

"…Wow…three days? Really? Okay…three days," Sakura muttered mostly to herself. "I want to eat but I've been so empty that the feeling's turned into being nauseated. It's normal."

"I'll go get you some toast or soup," Itachi volunteered, instantly on his feet. "Do you want anything else?"

Sakura shook her head, doing her best to smile reassuringly though her stomach was on the edge of revolt. "Toast sounds great. I'm going to need to get my strength back after missing so many days."

* * *

"I see Haruno-san has again failed to show up to class today."

Orochimaru's insidious voice oozed through Sasori's thoughts, though he kept his eyes carefully trained on the worksheet that had just been handed out. Today they were watching a video tutorial on elements of the periodic table that were too volatile or expensive to be handled in the lab itself, and the worksheet was to make sure they paid attention. But Sasori found himself having some difficulty keeping his mind on track as various elements were set on fire, exploded, or used to create any number of complex compounds. In fact, by the end of the class, he looked down to find his paper would just barely manage to scrape a B- grade with its lackluster work.

He had been too distracted worrying about Sakura and the gleefully cruel promise in the chemistry teacher's voice at her eventual return to classes.

And it was made all the worse by the fact that Sakura still hadn't woken up yet except to eat small amounts of food and water, and then go straight back to sleep.

Worry knotted his stomach, an emotion he was rather unfamiliar with, though he kept his face smooth and unconcerned as he lined up with the other students to submit their papers. On purpose, he managed to make himself the last person in line.

Orochimaru smiled as he approached, a discomfiting expression so cruel and truculent and yet gleeful that the redhead found himself unconsciously taking smaller steps forward as their eyes locked.

"Last one in line again today," Orochimaru commented as he took Sasori's paper, scanned it briefly, and tutted. "I assume you are here to pick up Haruno-san's homework. Again."

"Yes, sensei."

"Here."

The packet was heavy, probably twice as thick as the homework everyone else had gotten today, and it had been the same with yesterday's packet. Sasori suppressed the fierce urge to glare or snarl profanity at his teacher, neither of which would have gone over well. They would only have alerted Orochimaru that all was not as he thought. That Sasori didn't feel nothing for Sakura, double negatives or not, but that he felt…something. And Sasori was beginning to suspect that the something feeling was something quite intense and deep and much more meaningful than so many feelings he had had besides.

But Orochimaru was never to know that, so the redhead accepted the packet with a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat.

"Thank you. Sensei."

It wasn't until Sasori had turned away that Orochimaru said, "You're very kind to her, Sasori. Fetching her homework every day."

Ice and fear filled his veins, intense and painful, but he forced himself to be nonchalant as he paused and glanced over his shoulder. The sneer that twisted his face then disgusted him, but he tamped down that feeling and let only disdain fill his eyes. "I drew the short straw. And I was already in this class anyway."

Orochimaru's chuckle followed him out the door.

So. Little had changed. The chemistry teacher found himself inordinately pleased with that development. The months had slipped past, August into November, and still they had not warmed up to the little pink haired girl who flitted about so innocently in school. She wasn't nearly cowed enough to suit him, but he supposed that rather than intimidate her they had just chosen to ignore the girl and leave her…wherever she slept in that dorm house. He imagined she was like a mouse, mostly keeping to her den and only scurrying out for meals and such. It was a cheering thought.

With another quiet chuckle, Orochimaru flipped through his gradebook and marked another tick by Sakura's name. He couldn't do more to her than take points off for not attending classes, but he planned on demanding all the homework he'd given her over the last two days as soon as she was well enough to come back to school. And chances were, it wouldn't be done. At least not all the way done. Just as he wanted.

Akatsuki dorm had been _his_ to manage, his to rule, and this girl from his past, _hated, hated girl_ had deposed him. She was not going to get away with it, and he was going to make her life miserable in every way, shape, and form.

It was his war, and soon, his victory.

Students filtered into the chemistry classroom, giving each other nervous glances as Orochimaru's sinister mirth quietly echoed from the front.

* * *

In Sakura's room, somewhere tucked under a fold of her bedsheets, her cellphone buzzed…and buzzed…and buzzed…

Click. "Hello, this is Haruno Sakura. I'm sorry I missed your call, I'm probably busy or in class right now but I want to hear from you so please leave your name and number and I'll call you back as soon as I can. Thanks so much! Bye!"

A long message recorded, and the screen shone displaying a missed call and voicemail received.

Downstairs in the common room, Sakura sat almost completely engulfed by blankets with Itachi on one side and Deidara on the other, a plate of toast balanced on her knee with a glass of orange juice in her hands, laughing for the first time in days.

Sakura sighed as she finished the last piece of toast. "Finally. Food," she said with a soft giggle as she dusted her fingers of crumbs. "It's so nice not to have your stomach knotting every time you move. Thanks for carrying me downstairs by the way, Itachi-nii," she added.

The look in her eyes was soft, comforting, and Deidara could tell that her gaze warmed the other junior incredibly. Itachi's jet-black eyes matched hers. It made something coil in the blond's gut, something that wasn't relief to find Sakura awake and eating. And she had begun to call him 'Itachi-nii'. It was both incredibly confusing and somewhat…worrying.

The thought rose unbidden that perhaps he was losing the pink-haired girl, losing her to the Uchiha. But did that make any sense? He had never had her to begin with…and neither had Itachi. But now…

_No,_ Deidara told himself sharply, keeping his facial features pleasant as his fingers unconsciously sought Sakura's. _You can't dictate who she likes and there's no saying she doesn't like you too…_ His comfort came in the form of the girl's hand, unhesitatingly twining fingers with his when he reached for her. She was not turning him away.

It still made his chest constrict when Itachi brushed his fingers gently across Sakura's cheek to tuck a lock of strawberry-cream hair behind an ear, and Sakura's response was a widening of the eyes and the words, "I remember!" in a soft gasp.

It still hurt.

Sakura chuckled as her eyes slid glances at the Uchiha under thick lashes. "You used to do that before, too."

"Aa."

Itachi. Himself. They were both at this girl's mercy. Her hand still kept his prisoner, willing prisoner, as she murmured things to the dark-haired boy. Selfishly, he wished her attention was his and his alone, but too many months had passed sharing between so many people who all wished her well. He had learned to accept it…

Or not.

With a look that might have constituted as pout had it been on the face of a five-year-old girl, Deidara swooped Sakura away from Itachi, blankets and all, to bury his face in her neck and sigh.

A giggle, a real laugh, erupted from the rose-haired girl's lips as she squeaked for him to let go. "Stop! D-Deidara! I'm _ticklish!_" Soft breathing on her neck had always been Sakura's weakness, and she squirmed and squealed going bright red in the face as she made a weak and halfhearted struggle for freedom. It was futile and she knew it. The laughs streamed out of her like bubbles in a fish tank.

And then Deidara, in a fit of mischief, licked her neck.

Sakura's face exploded in crimson, making it so dark that for a second Itachi was genuinely afraid, and then she swung around and smacked Deidara's arm so hard that both boys were certain there'd be a bright red handprint on the blond's bicep for weeks. Literal weeks. Okay, maybe not literal weeks but at least a couple of hours and possibly the rest of the day.

"Ow! Sakura-chan!" Deidara whined, his brilliant blue eyes gleaming to give lie to his tone. He was more than happy, even for this kind of attention if it was undivided and from Sakura. He was in love, he knew it, and he really didn't care.

But even that giddiness diminished a bit when Sakura laughed and groaned and huffed and finally settled back into her blankets with a sigh, the flush that had risen to her cheeks only ebbing the tiniest bit. "I think…I think I need to get back to bed," she muttered thickly, a hand coming up to press her forehead. "After doing nothing but sleep for days, using so much energy at once really took it out of me."

"I'll take her back upstairs," Itachi declared quickly, scooping up Sakura in his arms bridal style so that she trailed blankets behind her like a bizarre, patchwork wedding gown.

Deidara nodded mutely over Sakura's protests that she was fully able to walk on her own now that she'd had some food, and soon found himself alone. The couch was still warm with the body heat of three people, and from somewhere above Sakura's voice could be heard growing fainter and fainter. The blond tucked his feet under a couch cushion and sighed.

"I'm jealous."

The monster within had reared its ugly head, gnashing its teeth. It wanted Sakura for itself, no sharing, no being the bigger person.

"And Sakura is her own person." With a grimace, Deidara forced himself to placate the beast. If he could not tuck it back behind some remote door in his mind, he could at least lull it so that it didn't feel too tempted to punch housemates in the face or take up too much of Sakura's time by himself. That was something Sakura would not appreciate, and he wasn't going to let anything get in the way of being there for her, not even himself.

But it took every bit of effort to stay seated on the couch with Itachi tenderly carrying the pinkette upstairs. Deidara couldn't help feeling it should have been him.

"It's…so strange," Sakura murmured, a yawn tripping her words as she let Itachi tuck her into bed. For a moment she wondered if this reminded him of their childhood. It did for her. She wanted to sift through those memories that she had back and take her time with them, but being so easily fatigued made her mind refuse to focus.

So she basked in this regained comfort she felt around Itachi, as pervasive as the one she felt when with Naruto or Sasuke or even Kisame and Deidara. It felt like brotherly affection, like the gentle warmth that was her two best friends, except…

Except not only that.

Something made her reach out and catch his sleeve as he straightened, made her tug him down.

The urge was soul-deep and impulsive; she didn't even let herself think as she rose up on one elbow and ever so gently brushed a kiss to Itachi's cheek.

His skin was warm and soft under her lips, growing warmer as she pulled just a little away. It felt appropriate, like she had done this before as a child, and for now she suspended the thought that she was no longer seven years old, leaving the face-heating embarrassment behind as she smiled just a little sleepily into Itachi's eyes.

Those obsidian orbs were unreadable, hard as flint and soft as down, filled with conflict. And then in a single, smooth movement, Itachi turned his head just the right amount and his lips descended on hers.

It was nothing like kissing his cheek, nothing like initiating the moment herself. In an instant Sakura felt filled to the brim with a golden heat that wrapped her up in its warm embrace until she was drowning in the very rightness of it. Lips that were gentle and tender brushed against hers in a teasing parody of what she had done to his cheek, and then his lips parted, hers following suit, and she was lost.

Slow, sweet, loving, these were all words she would have used to describe (had she any thoughts available for describing instead of just experiencing) the kiss. Perfect. Itachi kissed her like it was all he wanted in life, as if he had all the time in the world, and especially as though he could do it forever. Even the slight hesitancy she noticed right at the beginning before the experience engulfed her entirely was touching.

And she found herself sighing into his mouth as her arms snaked around his shoulders and her hands found their way to his hair. Somewhere along the way Itachi's hand had cupped the back of her neck to better angle his tender assault on her senses, and his hair-tie tangled in her fingers so that the inky strands of his hair shrouded them in a dark curtain. His tongue gently stole her soul away with every golden second that passed. Her body was melting into a puddle of perfect happiness.

She found herself wishing the moment would never end.

It was years, or perhaps only seconds, later that Itachi slowly pulled away to take in her reaction, as if her sweet response to every stroke of his tongue hadn't been proof enough of her willingness. Her cheeks were barely flushed, her eyes hooded and sleepy, their emerald depths curtained by pale pink lashes. Her lips were just the tiniest bit puffy and glistened invitingly.

She should not have been allowed to look like that, or to smile so winsomely afterwards. And somehow she found the wherewithal to mumble, "I don't remember anything like _that_ from our childhood," before her eyelids fluttered and closed, concealing lush green eyes in sleep.

For long moments Itachi stayed perfectly still, hovering over Sakura with both hands fisted in her sheets, until he was certain by her even breathing that she was truly and deeply gone to the land of dreams. Only then did he move, slowly and quietly, from his position. He did not go very far.

Slumping down at the foot of her bed, Itachi found himself doing something he had never thought he would do and buried his face in his hands.

_So much…has changed._

She remembered him. That dimension of their relationship had obviously colored their most recent interactions downstairs with Deidara. He found a deep-seated appreciation for how relaxed she had become with him, as if unlocking that part of her memory kept her from shying away at his every touch. But this kiss…

Itachi could feel her lips against his even now, his mind conjuring up the exquisite feeling. It had been so intimate and slow and passionate, and it awoke a craving in him for another. And another. It was so unlike the episode during the Halloween party. She had willingly kissed him on the cheek, and taking that for acceptance he had claimed her mouth.

He remembered that spike of fear in his blood as his lips melted against hers that perhaps he was doing irreparable damage to their relationship…and suddenly she was kissing him back and her arms were around his neck and her fingers in his hair. The ink-black locks still pooled over his shoulders, free of the tie he usually used to keep them neat.

It had been too much. The desire that had filled him on Halloween was back just as strong, awakened by a kiss like something out of a fairytale. Had he lesser self-control he might just turn around, wake Sakura, and begin where they had left off.

In the silence of Sakura's room, Itachi allowed himself a soft groan.

It was unbecoming of an Uchiha, but this girl tried him like nothing he had ever encountered, a nexus of insanity that he welcomed into his life. He wanted her, chaos and all. He watched her roll onto her side and tuck a hand under her cheek, his own coming around to gently tap against the fingertips of her free hand. They twitched in response, bringing a slight smile to his lips.

Somewhere downstairs, he heard the rest of the dorm come home and hear the good news of Sakura's awakening from a cheery Deidara. He ought to get up and join them, but as he moved to do so, a clatter almost made him jump.

Almost.

Being so startled would probably also have constituted behavior unbecoming of an Uchiha, and he'd already done enough of that today if you counted quiet groaning and losing his control to kiss Sakura on the lips.

Her cellphone lay on the floor, the screen having turned on at the impact. Clearly displayed was a missed call and a voicemail, the number a familiar one. It was from his little brother.

Sakura generally took her cellphone everywhere; she had gotten into the habit of doing so since her trip to Bellflower Square with Ino that had left Kisame very annoyed with her during the first week of school. That she had left it up here…did that mean that her feverish mind was still rather addled? Or, better still, that perhaps she hadn't thought of it because she already had what she wanted here. With them.

Warmed by the thought, one that his heart desperately wished to be true, he got up and made his way downstairs to join the celebration of his housemates.

* * *

"So Sakura's awake!"

His otouto's friend was displaying his penchant for yelling at the top of his lungs, causing a ruckus that allowed Itachi to slip unnoticed into the common room. Deidara had obviously been telling the others that Sakura was finally awake and conscious and staying so for more than the time it took to take a couple sips of water and have a little food, and the information had had mixed results, it appeared. Kisame seemed to have been in the middle of lecturing Deidara, so much Itachi could tell from their postures, when Naruto had interrupted.

He could also see the blond filling his lungs to make another ninety decibel bellow, and thought of the sleeping Sakura three floors up. Sleeping Sakura who had kissed him so sweetly…

_Mind on track, Uchiha._

"Sakura _was_ awake," he corrected, pitching his voice so that they all heard him despite the quiet tone. "She is not any longer."

"WH-"

"Dobe!" Sasuke's low hiss stopped Naruto, mid cry, the dark glare reminding the overly energetic blond that their best friend was still sick. His subsequent, "What?!" was just a stage whisper, losing none of its disbelief.

"How come she's back to sleeping?"

"Those who have been ill for a while are sometimes easily fatigued when they attempt to go back to their routines. Sakura needed a nap," Itachi explained with the patient air of someone stating the obvious.

"But she was awake earlier, aniki. Awake and coherent."

Itachi nodded curtly at his brother's questioning. "Aa."

"Then why didn't she answer our phone call?"

"You called her? Seriously. During damn school hours?" Hidan all but barked, either annoyed that they could have woken her or possibly annoyed that he hadn't thought to do that himself.

"It was during the break between classes," Naruto replied smugly. "I borrowed teme's phone and tried to contact Sakura-chan, but she wouldn't pick up. I guess she was napping."

_No, I'm pretty certain they called while Sakura was downstairs with Deidara and I_, Itachi thought, feeling inordinately pleased. _If they'd called before, either Deidara or I would have noticed. Sakura hasn't been sleeping by herself since…_

Since she'd first gotten sick.

But no need for the loudmouth blond kid to know that.

"Well, if she's napping now," Naruto said at last, "I guess teme and I are going to just have to wait here until she wakes."

"No."

"Shut up, Naruto," Sasuke cut in before the blond said anything, sizing up Kisame. The gill-tattooed senior had just refused to let them stay in Akatsuki dorm while they waited for Sakura to wake up, and Sasuke wanted to know why. Naruto's straightforward approach had some benefits, but this was not a situation where he felt it would…really come to the best advantage. "Why are you not willing to let us stay."

Kisame smirked. If the sophomore brat thought he was going to be intimidated by Uchiha non-questions, the kid had another thing coming. He wasn't Itachi's roommate and sort of best friend for nothing. "Because _he_," he said, indicating Naruto, "Is loud and probably won't be able to stay quiet and neither of you know when she's going to wake. You're just going to be wasting time sitting around here and the rest of us have stuff to do."

"What kind of stuff?" Naruto wanted to know, his cerulean eyes narrowed suspiciously. He hadn't appreciated Kisame's reasoning for not wanting him around. Sakura was one of his best friends, damn it, and he wasn't about to forget it. She would have waited up for them if one of them had been sick.

"Classwork. Homework. Responsible upperclassmen stuff," Kisame quipped. "Unlike you squirts, we have some pretty serious real work to do. And," he added, noticing that Naruto was geared to argue, "Sakura wouldn't want you getting in the way of that."

Naruto mentally stuttered to a halt. As much as he hated to admit it, the senior was right. Sakura took studying pretty seriously; she had to with her ambitions to become a world-class doctor like her mother, and she could be very fierce when either of them disrespectfully disturbed the studies of, well, _anyone_. Damn.

Kisame's smirk said he knew he'd won.

"Fine," Naruto all but spat out, his face showing every iota of disgruntlement he felt. "We're going to go _for Sakura_, but you better tell us when she's awake." And with that piece of eloquence, he stalked out.

Dispassionately, Itachi analyzed the set of the boy's shoulders, the volatile reactions, and drew the conclusion that he was truly and deeply concerned for Sakura's health. Knowing that he could have talked to her and been assured that she was recovering but wouldn't be able to for who knew how long was something Naruto had not appreciated. In fact, he hated it. The boy loved his friend like a sister he'd never had, and his annoying flashes of temper were all rooted in his desire to watch over one of the people who were precious to him. It was forgivable, if a bit irksome.

Sasuke was making for the door too, seeing no reason to linger when the person he had been seeking was in no state to be receiving visitors. But he did pause in the doorway and toss over his shoulder, "We _will_ be back. Sakura has others than just Akatsuki dorm in her life," before disappearing.

The words had less impact than his fierce speech the day before, delivered as he slipped away. The upperclassmen knew that, in this confrontation over Sakura, they had won.

* * *

"To Sakura!"

Glasses rose in the air, filled with everything from water to orange juice to milk to soda, as the girl being toasted blushed prettily in her seat. She'd woken up from her nap to find a very attentive Hidan (it had been strange to find him so solicitous and his speech free of profanity) at her side wanting to know if she might be strong enough to join them for dinner.

She hadn't been, not exactly anyway, but she hadn't had the heart to tell Hidan so when the silver-haired senior looked at her with such caring and relief in his eyes. Her cheeks had heated under his gaze, and she'd nodded her agreement without much consideration. And he had immediately scooped her up as Itachi had earlier that day, bridal style with blankets trailing, and brought her downstairs to happy cheers to be enthroned at the dinner table.

"Your little friends came by after classes again," Kisame informed her as the others busied themselves with dishing out dinner (salad and miso soup and plain onigiri with umeboshi inside, invalid food and all things that would settle well in her stomach Sakura was delighted to find), smirking a little as Sakura's cheeks grew darker than her hair. "You were sleeping and I didn't want to wake you, so I kicked 'em out."

"Kisame-nii!" Sakura cried, half distressed and half amused, though she felt bad for Sasuke and Naruto's sakes. They had probably been rather worried about her, and though she vaguely remembered them bringing dinner the night before, everything was rather fogged by her fever. _I'll have to remember to call them when I get upstairs._

"Quit worrying, candy girl," Kisame drawled, tugging a lock of her bubblegum-pink hair gently between two fingers. "I told 'em I'd let you know they dropped by if you woke up."

"Mou…"

"Enough teasing, Sakura-chan gets tired out quickly, yeah," Deidara admonished, gently shoving a full plate in front of the girl. "You're too energetic, Kisame."

"Says the guy who's motto is 'Art is an explosion' or something like that," Hidan snorted, his mouth half full of rice and nori. "I mean, seriously-,"

"Shut up!"

Sakura chuckled softly, her viridian eyes glowing with mirth as she sipped at her soup. The good-natured bickering around the table washed over her, more rejuvenating than any medication. This was comforting and familiar and…_and home_.

The thought was startling and unbidden, rising from the depths of her mind like some forgotten garden rake in the overgrown lawn of her thoughts to smack her dead in the face with the wooden handle. And like she had really been literally poleaxed, Sakura sat staring and her dinner without seeing it as she turned the word over in her mind.

Home.

Home not like she felt living with her mother, because that was a totally different feeling all together, but home like she had imagined it in her mind. Filled with laughter and warmth and caring and love.

_Some_ kinds of love, anyway.

Kisame was brotherly and the others were…very nice…

And she was going to steer clear of that thought for now…

But, home! She had found a home. And it felt good to be here and have these people celebrate her recovery and know that they cared.

So she nibbled away at her dinner as she chatted away with them, meeting their happy-and-yet-concerned-and-cautious glances with a reassuring one of her own, letting them know that she was on the way to getting better. She felt a lot more awake than she had earlier that day; she knew she was improving.

"Sakura…do you feel like going back to bed?" Zetsu asked as the dinner dishes were cleared away (_without_ her help because the boys weren't letting her lift a finger yet), the hopeful tone in his voice unmistakable. He wanted her to stay up, and by the glances of the others, they did too.

Thankfully, she was quite recovered with the help of food and drink, so she agreed readily and soon found herself on the couch in the common room with a blanket over her lap and a cup of chamomile tea on the table by her elbow, a small stack of books at her side. Sakura blinked. The move had occurred within seconds, and had left her feeling a tiny bit disoriented at their efficiency. "That was…quick."

Zetsu grinned at her and then, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, plucked a flower from the vase on the table and tucked it behind her ear.

Sakura flushed, unknowingly creating a gradient that the green-haired boy admired between the dark pink of her cheeks, the lighter pink of her hair, and the very white of the flower. A sweet perfume drifted down from the blossom, filling each breath with its delicate scent. "Th-thank you, Zetsu," Sakura stammered, feeling her natural shyness reassert itself with full force. "I…I don't know what to say…"

"You're welcome," Zetsu replied with studied nonchalance, hoping to put the girl at ease. "They're all for you, the ones in the vase. I thought you might like them."

"They smell lovely." Sakura breathed in the heady scent with a sigh, burying her face in the pale blooms. "What are they?"

"Sweet pea," the other boy replied. "I got them from a greenhouse I help out at."

"They're beautiful, Zetsu," she murmured. "Thank you."

His answering smile was as sweet as the scent of the flowers before he drifted away to do laundry.

Sakura exchanged the vase of sweet pea she'd been holding for her mug of hot chamomile tea, her body relaxing as the herbal scent of the tea mingled with the fragrance of the blossom in her hair. It was so nice to feel wanted, and though she had no desire to be sick again just to have this experience, she couldn't help but enjoy the pleasant side effects.

Zetsu had given her flowers, Hidan hadn't used a single bit of profanity all evening, and Itachi…

Her face superheated suddenly as the memory of the kiss came rushing back to her. She had kissed _Itachi_! _She_ had kissed Itachi! She had been the instigator, at least of the kiss on the cheek, and a full and willing participant to everything that had followed! Sakura would not have been surprised if Zetsu's flower had sizzled from the heat radiating off her face. Suddenly the chamomile tea was too hot and she would have given anything for something iced to cool herself down. Why had she done it?!

And…had she liked it?

The thought brought her up short. She _had_ enjoyed kissing Itachi. She couldn't deny that. But compared to the only other kiss she could remember, Deidara's, it had sparked a completely different reaction. It had been slow and sweet and intimate, while the blond's kiss was all fireworks and pent up heat. Had it been the moment? The fact that she hadn't known Deidara very well when it happened? Or because she'd just regained a part of herself and her relationship with Itachi that made his kiss so delicious?

Had she just described a kiss as _delicious?_

With a groan, Sakura buried her face in the blanket over her knees. Why was she even thinking about this? It had to be fever ramblings or something!

"Sakura?"

She yelped, her face popping up out of the plush quilt to almost head-butt Sasori in the nose. The redhead managed to pull out of the way just in time, but raised an elegant eyebrow in her direction, an inquiry as to her state of distress.

"Sorry, sorry, I'm just…spazzing. Still a little sick, after all," Sakura said quickly, hoping he bought her story. She couldn't very well tell him she had been thinking about the kisses she had shared with his roommate and another of their housemates. The very thought sent her mind reeling.

"Ah, well if you aren't feeling your best…" Sasori turned and the slump of his shoulders, as well as the slight edge to his tone, said he wanted to stay.

Sakura's hand caught his before she realized she was moving, tugging him down even as his stiff posture relaxed. She did her best not to think of how the last time she had caught a boy in this impulsive fashion she had ended up kissing Itachi.

"Please, you don't have to go."

There was a second's hesitation, and then Sasori was settled next to her, caging her in between the arm of the couch and his body. Sakura waited for the guy-shy reaction she usually had, but only comfort settled through her body. The surprise was a flutter in the back of her mind as she was thoroughly distracted by the thick packet in the boy's hands and the apologetic look on his face. "Sasori?"

"This is your homework. The snake scum set it for you."

The mention of Orochimaru made Sakura grimace, but flipping through the packet made it grow more fierce as she realized just how much work it was. Pages and pages of problems assaulted her eyes, all on the classes she had missed. How was she to know how to figure these out? "Of course. This is just so typical of him," she spat venomously as she riffled through the sheets. "This is probably going to take me all day tomorrow with a textbook."

"No, it will not."

"Hmm?" She glanced up with mild confusion in her eyes, her mind clearly still buzzing with chemistry.

"I will help you."

Sakura's eyes widened at his offer. "Sasori, this is going to take a while. You need to do your own homework too, don't you?"

The redhead shook his head. "I will take tomorrow off and spend it helping you with your homework. Kisame promised I could do so," he added before she could protest further. "There is no reason for concern."

"There are plenty of reasons for concern," Sakura muttered under her breath, worried how Orochimaru might see Sasori's sudden absence from class. But she did need her help and his offer had been so genuine. Her cheeks flushed with warmth, the same feeling flooding her chest as her hand found his and squeezed to let him know how much she appreciated what he was doing for her. "Thank you, Sasori."

The light in his eyes made her blush darker still, the rush of blood somehow making her lightheaded as she sat. Sasori was more observant than she thought he was, for he shook his head and presented her with his back.

"You still need to stay rested," he said over her soft protests. "Don't worry about the chemistry homework. I will definitely make sure you finish every problem correctly so the snake can't dock any more points off you than he has."

She mumbled her thanks, her blushes not helping with the lightheadedness in the least, and clung to Sasori as he made the trek back up the stairs with her on his back. She felt like a little girl again, doing the same thing to Itachi when she was too tuckered out to walk on her own. It was…nice. She snuggled a little closer and yawned, and yawned again.

They didn't stop as Sasori said goodnight and she changed into a pair of pink pajama pants with snails printed all over (a present from her mother…really, snails…) and the t-shirt she'd gotten from Zetsu, and five minutes later she was almost asleep when a knock on the door brought her back from the brink of unconsciousness.

"Yes?"

To her surprise, she had been expecting Itachi or Deidara or Kisame if anyone at all, it was Kakuzu who pushed her door open. Not really knowing what to do, she offered him the chair that had been at her bedside for three days and sat up. She wasn't exactly certain what Kakuzu would possibly want with her, and she was a little cranky being so sleepy and all, but he must have watched over her like the others and she was too grateful of that to be annoyed at his intrusion.

The senior shuffled over, an uncharacteristically shy gesture that would have tipped Sakura immediately that something was up, but she was too tired to register it really. Instead she glanced over to him expectantly, wondering just what had Kakuzu in her room when it was obvious from the look of her that she needed a good night's sleep.

Finally, the silence stretched out so long that the gratefulness _did_ fade, bringing a touch of irritation to her thoughts. "Do I have to pay to get you to talk?" Sakura asked more sharply than she'd intended, her brows slightly furrowed.

"No. Here."

A package she hadn't noticed before was shoved into her hands.

Eyes wide with surprise and no trace of sleepiness left, Sakura gingerly unwrapped the garishly colored wrapping paper (leftovers from some past Christmas, Kakuzu could be a real skinflint sometimes) that fell away easily under her hands. It was a book.

Other people might have been annoyed to get a book, other people might not have thought this slightly tattered copy of Grimm's Fairytales to be particularly unique in any way, but Sakura was not other people.

"Oh, Kakuzu," she breathed, awe evident in her voice as her fingers delicately stroked the book's leather-bound spine. "For me?"

Kakuzu's nod was all the affirmation she needed; Sakura unashamedly turned back to her gift with delight in her eyes. It was bound in leather that had been dyed blue at one point in time. Now it was more of a faded greyish color that had hints of the deep navy that was once its primary color. The pages were slightly yellowed, but in good condition, the ink still dark in spite of the passage of time. Collecting, and reading, old books was a favorite pastime of Kakuzu's that Sakura had noted a couple times. She wasn't certain whether he liked them for literary value, because they could be cheap, or because they could be expensive. But they _meant_ something to him, and she knew the value of this gift.

The brown-haired male fidgeted as Sakura ran her fingers lightly over the cover and reverently flipped through the pages, staring down at the scar that crossed his arm (from a childhood accident) so that he didn't feel so self-conscious. He had found the book in a second-hand bookshop, a lovely gem amid tattered pages, and he'd thought of her. She reminded him of fairytales, and if he let himself admit it in the privacy of his mind, of princesses.

A gentle touch of her fingertips to his arm jerked him from his thoughts. Eyes of jade met eyes of emerald and shone with admiration and thanks, warming his blood.

"Thank you, Kakuzu," she murmured with quiet happiness, her fingers curled protectively around the volume of stories. "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome." And then to cover up the feelings her genuine words had created, he added gruffly, "Don't stay up reading them. You need to rest," and slipped out before she could say more to create unfamiliar feelings in his chest. The heat was welcome but too different to allow for long without analyzing thoroughly. He had to analyze it. Possibly right now so that he didn't stay here.

He met Kisame on the way down the stairs, the other senior sitting on one of the steps in a manner that was deceptively nonchalant.

"What'd you take upstairs?"

Kakuzu narrowed his eyes. "Why does it matter?"

The other shrugged.

Kakuzu sighed. "Sakura now has a volume of Grimm fairytales."

"One that she didn't have before?"

"…Yes."

Kisame's eyes narrowed, then widened suddenly. "Don't tell me you _gave_ her something. You. You _bought_ Sakura something."

Kakuzu's complete and utter lack of a comment was answer enough.

The gill-tattooed senior goggled at him, then got to his feet with an abruptness that nearly unbalanced him. "You bought her something."

"She means a lot to the dorm."

"The entire dorm," Kisame muttered, casting sharp glances at the green-eyed male at his side. With a sigh he started to stalk off down the stairs to his room, declaring, "I'm going to bed."

It was too much to take in all at once.

And upstairs in Sakura's room, the rose-haired girl succumbed to exhausted sleep, her phone untouched by her bedside.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if you did please review! Your comments fuel my inspiration!

Aria, out.


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